Bluff

good-naturedly direct, blunt, or frank; heartily outspoken:
a big, bluff, generous man.
presenting a bold and nearly perpendicular front, as a coastline:
a bluff, precipitous headland.
Nautical. (of the bow of a vessel) having a full, blunt form.
a cliff, headland, or hill with a broad, steep face.
North Dakota, Wisconsin, and the Canadian Prairie Provinces. a clump or grove of trees on a prairie or other generally treeless area.
to mislead by a display of strength, self-confidence, or the like:
He bluffed me into believing that he was a doctor.
to gain by bluffing:
He bluffed his way into the job.
Poker. to deceive by a show of confidence in the strength of one’s cards.
to mislead someone by presenting a bold, strong, or self-confident front:
That open face makes it impossible for him to bluff.
an act or instance or the practice of bluffing:
Her pathetic story was all a bluff to get money from us. His assertive manner is mostly bluff.
a person who bluffs; bluffer:
That big bluff doesn’t have a nickel to his name.
call someone’s bluff, to expose a person’s deception; challenge someone to carry out a threat:
He always said he would quit, so we finally called his bluff.
Contemporary Examples

The Price of Being a Patton: Wrestling With the Legacy of America’s Most Famous General Tim Teeman May 25, 2014
A Carpet Weaver’s Essential Afghan Memoir: Qais Akbar Omar’s ‘A Fort of Nine Towers’ John Kael Weston June 5, 2013
The Story of the American Journalists Who Landed on D-Day Timothy M. Gay June 5, 2012
Let Them Eat Cake! Lydia Brownlow May 7, 2011
Meet the Young, Evangelical, Pro-Gay Movement Gene Robinson September 20, 2014

Historical Examples

The Eye of Dread Payne Erskine
The Adventures of the Chevalier De La Salle and His Companions, in Their Explorations of the Prairies, Forests, Lakes, and Rivers, of the New World, and Their Interviews with the Savage Tribes, Two Hundred Years Ago John S. C. Abbott
The Masked Bridal Mrs. Georgie Sheldon
The Romance of Names Ernest Weekley
Private Peat Harold R. Peat

verb
to pretend to be confident about an uncertain issue or to have undisclosed resources, in order to influence or deter (someone)
noun
deliberate deception intended to create the impression of a stronger position or greater resources than one actually has
call someone’s bluff, to challenge someone to give proof of his claims
noun
a steep promontory, bank, or cliff, esp one formed by river erosion on the outside bend of a meander
(Canadian) a clump of trees on the prairie; copse
adjective
good-naturedly frank and hearty
(of a bank, cliff, etc) presenting a steep broad face
v.
n.
see: call someone’s bluff