Synonym Chooser

How does the verb pamper contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of pamper are baby, humor, indulge, mollycoddle, and spoil. While all these words mean "to show undue favor to a person's desires and feelings," pamper implies inordinate gratification of desire for luxury and comfort with consequent enervating effect.

pampered by the amenities of modern living

When is baby a more appropriate choice than pamper?

The meanings of baby and pamper largely overlap; however, baby suggests excessive care, attention, or solicitude.

babying students by grading too easily

Where would humor be a reasonable alternative to pamper?

While the synonyms humor and pamper are close in meaning, humor stresses a yielding to a person's moods or whims.

humored him by letting him tell the story

When can indulge be used instead of pamper?

While in some cases nearly identical to pamper, indulge implies excessive compliance and weakness in gratifying another's or one's own desires.

indulged myself with food at the slightest excuse

When might mollycoddle be a better fit than pamper?

Although the words mollycoddle and pamper have much in common, mollycoddle suggests an excessive degree of care and attention to another's health or welfare.

refused to mollycoddle her malingering son

When is it sensible to use spoil instead of pamper?

The synonyms spoil and pamper are sometimes interchangeable, but spoil stresses the injurious effects on character by indulging or pampering.

foolish parents spoil their children

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pamper An emphasis on wellness means not only pampering spa treatments but advanced health tech, movement, and meditation sessions over an entire floor. Kathryn Romeyn, Travel + Leisure, 14 May 2025 Although less worldly than Welles, Anderson has a career that’s better financed, if not pampered, and that remains quintessentially American. Armond White, National Review, 30 May 2025 The attached Milk + Honey spa provides convenient pampering after travel, with a menu that has everything from an express facial and traditional massages to chemical peels and hair treatments. Claudia Fisher, Travel + Leisure, 19 May 2025 This set includes cleansers, moisturizers and serums to help her feel pampered and relaxed at bedtime. Bestreviews, Mercury News, 8 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for pamper
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pamper
Verb
  • Dodge won't spoil the surprise by confirming if the last one will be based on the Charger or the Challenger (or maybe both), but the evidence suggests the latter is more likely.
    Jack Fitzgerald, Car and Driver, 13 Feb. 2023
  • Farmers’ broiler chickens suffocate, and dairy products spoil.
    Monica Mark, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Feb. 2023
Verb
  • Lot holders know that tchotchkes aren’t allowed but that the grounds crew will indulge them, for a time.
    Paige Williams, New Yorker, 2 June 2025
  • Strive to indulge once in a while without overdoing it.
    Leigh Morgan, Quartz, 2 June 2025
Verb
  • Today’s retirement stewards nurse a Rube Goldberg contraption of laws, one-off integrations and workarounds.
    Miguel Kudry, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
  • After starting Saturday sharing the lead, Ben Griffin and Matthias Schmid continued their control of the leaderboard at the Charles Schwab Challenge with the pair nursing a 4-stroke lead headed into Sunday’s final round.
    Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Pamper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pamper. Accessed 21 Jun. 2025.

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