# cuddle

Pronunciation: US say "KUD-uhl" /ˈkʌd.l̩/; UK

## Verb

1. To lie snugly together with someone in an intimate physical embrace. *(US)*
   - Simple: To lie close together with someone, holding each other in a warm, loving way.
   - _Newlyweds often cuddle in bed for hours on a lazy Sunday morning._
   - _He cuddled his girlfriend close as the credits rolled._
2. To hug someone closely and with affection. *(UK)*
   - Simple: To hold someone close in your arms in a loving, friendly way.
   - _Go and cuddle your gran before she leaves._
   - _The cousins cuddled on the station platform, both in tears._
5. To hold someone, especially a baby, close in one's arms to give comfort or warmth.
   - Simple: To hold someone, like a baby, close in your arms to calm them or keep them warm.
   - _The nurse showed the new parents how to cuddle the newborn against their chest._
   - _She cuddled the shivering puppy inside her coat._
6. To lie close and snug, or to crouch or nestle down.
   - Simple: To curl up and lie close and cozy, or to crouch down low.
   - _A rabbit cuddled low in the long grass, hoping the hawk had not seen it._
   - _Small birds cuddle into the hedge when the wind turns cold._

## Noun

3. An intimate embrace in which two people lie or sit snugly together, usually closer and longer than a hug. *(US)*
   - Simple: A time when two people lie or sit close, holding each other for longer than a hug.
   - _They settled into a long cuddle under the blankets while the rain came down._
   - _He missed their late-night cuddles more than anything else about her._
4. An affectionate hug of the kind given to family and close friends, shorter and less intimate than a snuggle. *(UK)*
   - Simple: A warm, loving hug, like one you give your family or close friends.
   - _She gave her brother a quick cuddle at the school gates._
   - _Granddad handed out cuddles to everyone who came through the door._

## Origin

Of uncertain origin, but probably from a frequentative form of Middle English *cudden, cuththen ("to embrace"), a variant of cuthen, kithen ("to be familiar with, make known"), from cuth, couth ("known, familiar"), so equivalent to couth + -le. It is related to Middle Dutch kudden ("to come together, flock together").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/cuddle (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).