Synonyms

coddle

American

[kod-l] / ˈkɒd l /

verb (used with object)

coddled, coddling

to treat tenderly; nurse or tend indulgently; pamper.

to coddle children when they're sick.

Synonyms:

spoil, humor, baby, indulge
to cook (eggs, fruit, etc.) in water that is just below the boiling point; cook gently.

coddle British

/ ˈkɒdəl /

verb

to treat with indulgence
to cook (something, esp eggs) in water just below the boiling point

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

dialect stew made from ham and bacon scraps

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

coddler noun
uncoddled adjective

Etymology

Origin of coddle

1590–1600; variant of caudle, v. use of caudle

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Does Prada want to coddle you in an unravelling world?

From Barron's • Feb. 26, 2026

A good fit for: Cooks who don’t want to coddle their pans and don’t mind a little oil.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025

But when things are rough, we don’t have to coddle each other.

From Slate • Sep. 29, 2025

This is all so he can coddle his sulky, wild teenage son while expecting Carrie to limit all extracurricular cuddles to her adopted kitty, Shoe.

From Salon • May 29, 2025

There were fertile red meadows of epithelial tissue to catch and coddle a cancer cell.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023