mollycoddle

/ˈmɒl.ɪˌkɒd.əl/

Etymology

From molly + coddle.

mollycoddle means A person, especially a man or a boy, who is pampered and overprotected. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 74 out of 100.

Why this word is great

MOLLYCODDLE — [Noun, Verb] To treat someone, typically a male, with an excess of protective indulgence that weakens their character; also, a person so enfeebled. From the pet name Molly (a diminutive of Mary, historically used disparagingly for a weak or effeminate man) + coddle (meaning to pamper or treat tenderly). Unlike “pamper,” which suggests mere luxurious indulgence, or “coddle,” a neutral act of tender care, to mollycoddle is to cosset with the sting of emasculation, implying the treatment produces a state of infantile dependency. It is the over-starched linen of a boy kept from the mud, the gentle, insistent pressure of a hand that will not let you lift your own spoon, the careful removal of every pebble from a path until the walker forgets how to balance—a kindness that hollows out the soul it means to preserve. This is love's small, sad crime against the forging of a self.

noun

A person, especially a man or a boy, who is pampered and overprotected.“You have been bred up as a molly-coddle, Pen, and spoilt by the women.”

verb

To be overprotective and indulgent toward; to pamper.“Heerendorp by this means obtained an evil notoriety, and it was ordered to be burnt, and the women of Jacob's family to be transferred to a concentration camp where they would be mollycoddled at the expense of the English taxpayer.”