buffer

(bŭfˈər)

1. One that buffs, especially a piece of soft leather or cloth used to shine or polish.
2. A buffing wheel.

(bŭfˈər)

1. Something that lessens or absorbs the shock of an impact.
2. One that protects by intercepting or moderating adverse pressures or influences: “A sense of humor . . . may have served as a buffer against the . . . shocks of disappointment” (James Russell Lowell).
3. Something that separates potentially antagonistic entities, as an area between two rival powers that serves to lessen the danger of conflict.
4. Chemistry A substance that minimizes change in the acidity of a solution when an acid or base is added to the solution.
5. Computer Science A device or area used to store data temporarily.

1. To act as a buffer for or between.
2. Chemistry To treat (a solution) with a buffer.
3. Computer Science To hold or collect (data) in a buffer.