chubby

English

Etymology

Recorded since 1611, from chub (“short, thick fish species used as bait"; used metaphorically since 1558 for "lazy person”), an assibilated form of cub (“a lump, heap, mass”) and cob, from Middle English *cubbe (found only in derivative cubbel (“a block to which an animal is tethered”)), from Old Norse kubbr, kumbr (“block, stump, log”) and/or Old Norse kumben (“stumpy”), equivalent to chub +‎ -y. Cognate with dialectal Swedish kubbug (“fat, plump, chubby”). More at chub.

Pronunciation

• enPR: chŭbʹē, IPA^(key): /ˈtʃʌbi/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌbi

Adjective

chubby (comparative chubbier, superlative chubbiest)

1. Of a person: slightly overweight, somewhat fat, and hence plump, rounded, and soft.

   Synonyms: chunky, plump, podgy, tubby

   Obviously the chubby child was eating too much.

   • 2010, Marsha Hubler, The Long Ride Home, Zonderkidz (→ISBN), page 97:

     Slowly Skye wrapped her arms around the chubby woman's frame and rested her head on Rita's chest drenched with perspiration.

2. Of a body part: containing a moderate amount of fat.

   Synonyms: chunky, plump, podgy

   It’s quite normal for babies to have chubby cheeks.

   • 1867, Ivan Sergheïevitch Turgenef [i.e., Ivan Turgenev], chapter I, in Eugene Schuyler, transl., Fathers and Sons […], New York, N.Y.: Leypoldt and Holt, OCLC 1320657, page 1:

     The servant to whom he put this question was a young fellow with chubby cheeks, small, dull eyes, and a round chin, covered with a colorless down.

Derived terms

• chubbily
• chubbiness

Translations

of a person, somewhat fat

• Armenian: թմբլիկ (hy) (tʿmblik)
• Azerbaijani: çağ (az), dolğun, ətli-canlı, toppuş, koppuş
• Bulgarian: пухкав (bg) (puhkav)
• Catalan: grassonet, grosset
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 豐滿 (zh), 丰满 (zh) (fēngmǎn)

• Dutch: mollig (nl), volslank (nl)
• Finnish: pullea (fi), pulska (fi)
• French: potelé (fr) m, dodu (fr) m
• Galician: repoludo (gl)
• German: mollig (de)
• Hebrew: שְׁמַנְמַן‎ (sh'manmán)
• Italian: grassoccio, cicciuto, paffutello
• Japanese: ぽってり (potteri), ぽちゃぽちゃ (pochapocha)
• Maori: māretireti, pukunati, makune

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: lubben m or f

• Persian: تپل‎ (fa) (topol), کپل‎ (fa) (kopol), لنبه‎ (fa) (lombe)
• Plautdietsch: druglich
• Polish: pulchny (pl), pyzaty (pl)
• Portuguese: rechonchudo (pt) m, gorducho m, roliço (pt) m
• Romanian: plinuț (ro), grăsuț (ro), durduliu (ro) (regional), rotunjor (ro)
• Russian: пу́хленький (ru) (púxlenʹkij), пу́хлый (ru) (púxlyj), круглоли́цый (ru) (kruglolícyj), полнощёкий (ru) (polnoščókij), упи́танный (ru) (upítannyj), то́лстый (ru) (tólstyj), пуза́тый (ru) (puzátyj), корена́стый (ru) (korenástyj), то́лстенький (ru) (tólstenʹkij)
• Spanish: gordito m, rechoncho (es), regordete (colloquial), rellenito (colloquial), metido en carnes
• Swedish: knubbig (sv), mullig (sv)
• Thai: เจ้าเนื้อ

of a body part, containing a moderate amount of fat

• Bulgarian: закръглен (bg) (zakrǎglen)
• Dutch: mollig (nl)
• Finnish: pullea (fi)
• French: dodu (fr) m, potelé (fr) m

• Italian: paffuto (it), pienotto
• Spanish: morcillón (es)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} שמנמן‎ m (shmanman), ^{(please verify)} שמנמנה‎ f (shmanmana)

Noun

chubby (plural chubbies)

1. A chubby, plump person
   • 1949, R. Duffy Lewis, Dorothy Stote, How to build an infant's, girls' and teens' wear business: a manual for retailers and prospective shop owners

     The chubby is the girl who cannot be fitted in the regular 7 to 14 size range because she is too stout. Sizes for these girls are 7*4 to 141/^, and are specially styled and designed to give them better proportions.

   • 2007, Jackie Guerra, Under Construction: How I've Gained and Lost Millions of Dollars and Hundreds of Pounds, New Amer Library (→ISBN)

     The chubby is especially taken for granted: "Hey, can you watch my purse while I dance?"

2. (LGBT slang) An overweight or obese gay man.
3. (slang) A penile erection, especially when short and with a large circumference; a boner.

   Hey, Lucius, I just wanted to share a piece of personal information with you. I've got a... a chubby right now because [starts screaming] This is one of the most awesome experiences of my life!—Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

Derived terms

• chub (plump person)
• chubby chaser

Translations

chubby person

• Armenian: թմբլիկ (hy) (tʿmblik)
• Dutch: dikkerdje (nl) n
• Finnish: pullukka (fi)

• French: dodu (fr) m
• German: Dickerchen n
• Maori: pukunati

erection — see boner