snuggle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
snuggles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
snuggled,
past participle, past
-
snuggling
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
snuggles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
snuggled,
past participle, past
-
snuggling
present participle
noun
verb phrase
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
snugglesimple
-
snugglessimple
-
have snuggledperfect
-
has snuggledperfect
-
am snugglingprogressive
-
are snugglingprogressive
-
is snugglingprogressive
-
have been snugglingperfect progressive
-
has been snugglingperfect progressive
Past
-
snuggledsimple
-
had snuggledperfect
-
was snugglingprogressive
-
were snugglingprogressive
-
had been snugglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of snuggle
Explanation
To snuggle is to cuddle with someone. Snuggling is a little like hugging, and it often takes place in bed. This is a cutesy word for cute behavior: nestling or nuzzling someone. People snuggle to warm each other up or to be affectionate. People dating or married often snuggle. Close friends or siblings might snuggle, and people definitely snuggle with their pets. Snuggling is only likely to happen with people who are close; if you try to snuggle a stranger, you'll probably get arrested.
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.
See Examples For:
At one point in the clip, the white pup gazes adoringly at the NFL star before hopping onto a couch to snuggle beside him while Kelce lovingly pets the pooch.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026
Some responsibilities she’ll never give up: “The time to talk about our day, snuggle in bed, read books, that’s really special to me.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
This is because we snuggle with and sleep in bed with our cats.
From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2025
A couple of decades ago, the Hollywood Bowl started commissioning a different artist each season to design a throw blanket that’s as good to look at as it is to snuggle under.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2024
He and Skardebek would never snuggle by the fire on cold, rainy nights.
From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin
Calvacca doesn’t play favorites, she says, but she snuggles Valentina and calls Sonny Mister Handsome.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 31, 2026
Every fortnight, Samii Wood snuggles up with a group of strangers for a "cuddle puddle".
From BBC ● May 10, 2025
This account reposts tons of cute videos—of snuggles, leaps, yawns, and naps.
From Slate ● Dec. 28, 2024
The baby and I will do snuggles and I’ll nurse him in bed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 6, 2024
I fall into bed while I’m still chewing the last bite, and she tugs off my shoes and snuggles in beside me.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
My husband carried him into the room and placed him on the bed next to me as I snuggled his baby brother in the crook of my arm.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
Gus Walz rose from his seat snuggled in between his family who were all in tears and said, beaming at the vice president candidate, “That’s my dad.”
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2024
Beau snuggled next to her as she worked, slept in her bed and even tagged along with her when Pereira would leave the house.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
On the morning of 7 October, Amal Alabadla was heavily pregnant and snuggled up in bed with 18-month-old Noah when they were woken by a wall of sound.
From BBC ● Mar. 15, 2024
He snuggled against the tree’s trunk, sighing with contentment as his back fit into the wood just right.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
Her arc mirrored that of my Mexican immigrant parents, who were also mountain people who grew up in big farming families with no plumbing or electricity, snuggling with siblings during winter nights in unheated bedrooms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
My holiday season officially starts on the night before Thanksgiving, snuggling under a thick throw while sharing a fireside catch-up with my best friend.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025
Thankfully, the wait is almost over and I'll be snuggling up with a hot chocolate on Christmas Day to watch it with my family, just like everyone else.
From BBC ● Dec. 25, 2024
Both practices are concerned with defiance of worldly cares, with the tension between being a responsible member of society and snuggling beneath layers of blankets.
From New York Times ● Feb. 17, 2024
All I could think about was snuggling up to him and listening to him talk about scoring telling points.
From "My Brother Sam is Dead" by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
