coddle

English

Wikipedia

Etymology

Compare British dialect caddle (“to coax, spoil, fondle”) and cade.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈkɒdəl/
• Rhymes: -ɒdəl

Verb

coddle (third-person singular simple present coddles, present participle coddling, simple past and past participle coddled)

1. (transitive) To treat gently or with great care.

   How many of our English princes have been coddled at home by their fond papas and mammas! — Thackeray.

   He [Lord Byron] never coddled his reputation. — Southey.

2. (transitive) To cook slowly in hot water that is below the boiling point.

   It [the guava fruit] may be coddled. — Dampier.

Translations

to treat gently or with great care

• Bulgarian: глезя, угаждам
• Czech: rozmazlovat (cs)

• Esperanto: dorloti (eo)
• French: choyer (fr), dorloter (fr)

to cook slowly in hot water

• Bulgarian: къкря, варя на бавен огън

• Finnish: hauduttaa (fi)

Synonyms

• (treat gently): cosset, pamper, posset

Derived terms

• mollycoddle

Noun

coddle (plural coddles)

1. An Irish dish comprising layers of roughly sliced pork sausages and bacon rashers with sliced potatoes and onions.