as in pampering
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1
as in boiling
to cook in a liquid heated to the point that it gives off steam
a hearty, traditional breakfast that included coddled eggs
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2
as in spoiling
to treat with great or excessive care
accused the judiciary of coddling criminals
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Recent Examples of coddling
Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025
Those softies are going to get more coddling.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2025
Avoid over-coddling; instead, use play, treats, and touch to build confidence.
—Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025
Veronique De Rugy, Oc Register, 25 Nov. 2025
Campbell has accused the SCORE Act of disadvantaging these groups while coddling the NCAA.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 7 Oct. 2025
Salicylic acid penetrates deep into the pores to dissolve away acne-causing debris, while coddling the skin barrier with a cocktail of ceramides and niacinamide.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
This is not about lowering expectations or coddling employees.
—Ruth Oh Reitmeier, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Traditional romantic comedies often ask us to fall in love with, or at least be charmed by, Lucy or Julie, but neither film is keen on that kind of coddling.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
His Victor is the product of a coddling mother (Mia Goth), who dies young and leaves him emotionally adrift, and a domineering father (Charles Dance), who molds him into a brilliant but heedless inventor.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 20 Aug. 2025
Trump has a habit of coddling enemies and abusing friends, neither of which serves our strategic interests.
—Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025
This followed Ryan Clark accusing the Lakers of coddling LeBron’s son, Bronny James, as he won’t be required to travel while on G League team The South Bay Lakers due to the squad flying commercial.
—Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 21 Nov. 2024
Noun
The intense coddling and dysfunction within the family come to a head at the end of the show opener when a drunken Paul crashes a boat, killing his best friend’s girlfriend, Mallory (Madeline Popovich), and injuring all on board.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025
Those softies are going to get more coddling.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2025
Avoid over-coddling; instead, use play, treats, and touch to build confidence.
—Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025
Verb
True American industrial strength rests on productivity, innovation, competition, and access to global supply chains, not on coddling producers behind walls of higher prices.
—Veronique De Rugy, Oc Register, 25 Nov. 2025
Campbell has accused the SCORE Act of disadvantaging these groups while coddling the NCAA.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 7 Oct. 2025
Salicylic acid penetrates deep into the pores to dissolve away acne-causing debris, while coddling the skin barrier with a cocktail of ceramides and niacinamide.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
This is not about lowering expectations or coddling employees.
—Ruth Oh Reitmeier, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Traditional romantic comedies often ask us to fall in love with, or at least be charmed by, Lucy or Julie, but neither film is keen on that kind of coddling.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
His Victor is the product of a coddling mother (Mia Goth), who dies young and leaves him emotionally adrift, and a domineering father (Charles Dance), who molds him into a brilliant but heedless inventor.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 20 Aug. 2025
Trump has a habit of coddling enemies and abusing friends, neither of which serves our strategic interests.
—Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025
This followed Ryan Clark accusing the Lakers of coddling LeBron’s son, Bronny James, as he won’t be required to travel while on G League team The South Bay Lakers due to the squad flying commercial.
—Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 21 Nov. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coddling
Noun
-
At the top end, the Royal Suite trio of classes (Sea, Sky, and Star) come with progressive levels of luxury and pampering.—
Chrissie McClatchie,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Jan. 2026
-
For extra doses of pampering, a spa has a wide range of treatments.—
Juliana Shallcross,
Condé Nast Traveler,
31 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
We roasted tomatoes, garlic and chiles for red salsa, mixed corn flour with pork fat for the tamale batter, and roasted ancho chiles before frying them in oil and boiling them in chicken stock for the 27-ingredient mole sauce.—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Jan. 2026
-
My WhatsApp was boiling with messages and videos.—
Boris Muñoz,
Time,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Butter crocks are designed with an air-tight seal and a separate space to store water at the bottom that prevents air from reaching the butter, which can lead to spoiling.—
Alicia Geigel,
Southern Living,
7 Jan. 2026
-
There is also a fear in Cuba that the developments in Venezuela could cause a deterioration of the quality of life because of power issues, including with spoiling food, trash and mosquitoes.—
Phil Helsel,
NBC news,
4 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The novel is in many ways a string of dazzlingly deadpan and sharp observations about navigating the strange world of now, from predictive advertising to sugar babying to dead college friends.—
Jasmine Vojdani,
Vulture,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
The skaters, staff, volunteers and fans were generous in indulging me.—
Brian Munoz,
NPR,
11 Jan. 2026
-
José Daniel Ferrer’s life exposes the costs of indulging revolutionary illusions.—
Michael Lucchese,
Washington Post,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
LeBron James didn’t play due to left joint arthritis and sciatica, joining Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura (both nursing calf strains) on the unavailable list as the Lakers (23-12) saw their three-game winning streak come to an end.—
Oc Register,
Oc Register,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Beto Montenegro is currently nursing a cup of tea in a ski locker room in the French Alps.—
Leonor C. Suárez,
Rolling Stone,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Coddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coddling. Accessed 19 Jan. 2026.
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