There’s that old buffer you found on the lawn,’ and he pointed without pretence of reverence at the big black body with the yellow head
What does “he pointed without pretence of reverence” mean ?
What is pretence of reverence?
It means he pointed at the thing without even pretending to show respect for it.
Reading the sentence, it almost sounds like he’s pointing to something dead, which doesn’t quite make sense, unless there’s a definition of ‘buffer’ I don’t know about.
I realize that a ‘buffer’ can be BrE slang for an old man, but still the black body with yellow head doesn’t quite follow. I have to suspect it is some kind of bird or other animal.
A buffer can also be a kind of polishing machine, but again, it doesn’t quite make sense why he’d be expected to show any respect or reverence for a machine.
Now that I read your other question, the author seems to be using buffer as some kind of a statue shaped like a man, possibly used as some kind of barrier or protective post to keep something from hitting what it’s protecting.
Could you maybe provide the whole paragraph these sentences are taken from? Without some context, it’s a little murky.