coddle
Overprotect with tenderness
To coddle is to treat with excessive care or tenderness, often implying overprotection: She coddled him through every minor illness.
The word carries a slight criticism—coddling someone may prevent them from developing resilience.
Coddle also means to cook eggs gently in water just below boiling, though this culinary sense is far less common than the pampering one.
Damage or overindulge
- mollycoddleOverindulge with excessive protection
- cossetTo overindulge with care
- babyVery young child
- overprotectGuard too zealously
dote · indulge · fuss · cater · humor · overindulge · smother · helicopter
Ease or soothing relief
- consoleComfort in distress
- reassureEase someone's doubts
- nurtureSupport growth and development
- solaceRelief from distress
tenderness · gentleness · warmth · care · affection · empathy · compassion · kindness
Cook gently submerged
- simmerCook just under boiling
- bain-marieHeated water bath for cooking
- low-temperatureLacking heat, cool
- ramekinSmall ceramic baking dish
spoil
Damage or overindulge
- mollycoddleOverindulge with excessive protection
- cossetTo overindulge with care
- babyVery young child
overprotect · dote · indulge · fuss · cater · humor · overindulge · smother · helicopter · enable
comfort
Ease or soothing relief
solace · tenderness · gentleness · warmth · care · affection · empathy · compassion · kindness · support
poach
Cook gently submerged
- simmerCook just under boiling
- bain-marieHeated water bath for cooking
- low-temperatureLacking heat, cool
sheltered
Kept safe from harm
cloistered · entitled · soft · weak · dependent · fragile · delicate · precious · spoiled
- cooking termsbaste, baking, blanch, braise, roasting
- indulgenceindulgence, indulge, indulgent, self-indulgent, overindulgence
- tendernesstenderness, gentle, gentleness, softness, soft
- Irish foodIrish stew, colcannon, soda bread, Irish soda bread, black pudding
- Irish Slangcraic, eejit, gobshite, banjaxed, slagging
- Gaelic Wordsslainte, craic, bodhran, Gaelic, Irish