padding

American  

[pad-ing] / ˈpæd ɪŋ /

noun

1. material, as cotton or straw, used to pad something.

2. something added unnecessarily or dishonestly, as verbiage to a speech or a false charge on an expense account.

3. the act of a person or thing that pads.

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padding British  

/ ˈpædɪŋ /

noun

1. any soft material used to pad clothes, furniture, etc

2. superfluous material put into a speech or written work to pad it out; waffle

3. inflated or false entries in a financial account, esp an expense account

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Etymology

Origin of padding

First recorded in 1820–30; pad ¹ + -ing ¹

Explanation

A cushioning or protective material is padding. When you're moving into a new apartment, you might want to wrap your dishes in padding to keep them from being damaged. Padding has many different uses, from the padding in a padded mailing envelope to the padding in a sofa cushion that gives you a soft place to sit. There's also padding inside protective sports gear and built into yoga mats. Sometimes padding is simply used to make something seem bigger, and from this meaning comes the sense of padding meaning "unnecessary extra material," especially superfluous words in a speech or a book.

Example Sentences

Parents like Miller, Padding and the Elskamps are juggling their advocacy with their jobs and caring for their children.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 27, 2024

Padding a closet with blankets and pillows, Andrews’ grandson Sam jerry-rigged a recording space.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2022

Padding would also limit a slingshot’s impact, so football games would likely carry on unperturbed.

From Slate • May 29, 2018

Padding helps weaken the force of head collisions the same way airbags do: by slowing acceleration.

From The Verge • Feb. 5, 2016

Padding silently over the cold ground from the north, separately, singly, came a number of armored bears—a large number, and among them was their king.

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman