pfft pfft pfft.

n.  the sound of a moth bumping into things during flight.

<The moth bounced against a row of books: pfft, pfft, pfft.  Then soared up to the ceiling and into the window again.  —Andrea Barrett, Voyage of the Narwhal: A Novel.>

n.  the sound of osprey feathers sprouting.

<[M]y skin started to itch.  Pfft!  Pfft!  Pfft!  The hairs on my arms started growing like superfast-growing grass.  Then each long hair blossomed into a feather.  —K.A. Applegate, Animorphs #35.>

Pfft'pfft'pfft'pfft-pfft.

n.  The sound of machine-gun rounds pelting the snow, as in Two Wars: One Hero’s Fight on Two Fronts—Abroad and Within by Nate Self.

pfft-pfft.

n.  a grateful expression of thanks from a heavenly body, as discussed in Shamanic Voices: A Survey of Visionary Narratives by Joan Halifax; see pfft-pfft-pfft.


n.  puffs of breath, as when playing a musical instrument.

<[B]low the air out through your mouth, with your lips lightly closed, so that you clearly hear the breath coming out in puffs “pfft—pfft.”  —Dirk Schellberg, Didgeridoo: Ritual Origins and Playing Techniques.>

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