mollycoddle
[mol-ee-kod-l]
- a man or boy who is used to being coddled; a milksop.
Show More
- to coddle; pamper.
Show More
Origin of mollycoddle
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
fondle, pet, cosset, overindulge, dandle, caress, spoil, indulge, baby, coddle, overprotectExamples from the Web for mollycoddle
Historical Examples
Still, primarily, the Mollycoddle is a critic, not a man of action.
AppearancesGoldsworthy Lowes Dickinson
But to the Mollycoddle she apportions dyspepsia and black bile.
AppearancesGoldsworthy Lowes Dickinson
The Red-blood joins societies; the Mollycoddle is a non-joiner.
AppearancesGoldsworthy Lowes Dickinson
The Mollycoddle engenders ideas, and the Red-blood exploits them.
AppearancesGoldsworthy Lowes Dickinson
The Mollycoddle also despises the Red-blood, but he cannot do without him.
AppearancesGoldsworthy Lowes Dickinson
mollycoddle
- (tr) to treat with indulgent care; pamper
Show More
- a pampered person
Show More
Word Origin
C19: from molly ² + coddle
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
Word Origin and History for mollycoddle
v.
also molly-coddle, 1870, from a noun (1833) meaning "one who coddles himself," from Molly (pet name formation from Mary), which had been used contemptuously since 1754 for "a milksop, an effeminate man," + coddle (q.v.). Related: Mollycoddled; mollycoddling.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper