stuffed

Pronunciation

• /stʌft/ (American English)

Origin

From Middle English "stuffen," derived from Old French "estoffer," meaning "to cram or fill."

Meanings

1. Filled to capacity, especially with food:

   • "I'm so stuffed after that big meal."

2. Filled with a soft material for padding or display:

   • "The stuffed bear was her favorite toy."

3. Congested, as with a cold:

   • "His stuffed nose made it hard to breathe."

4. Preserved by filling the skin with material to maintain its shape:

   • "The museum had a stuffed owl on display."

Example Sentences

1. After Thanksgiving dinner, everyone felt completely stuffed.
2. She hugged her stuffed animal tightly as she fell asleep.
3. The stuffed peppers were a popular dish at the potluck.
4. His stuffed sinuses made it difficult to taste anything.

Related Words

• Forms: stuff (verb), stuffing (noun)
• Synonyms:
  • filled, crammed, packed
  • satiated, gorged, full
  • congested, blocked (for nasal passages)

Memorization Tricks

• Think of the "uff" in "stuffed" as the sound you might make when you're too full: "Uff, I can't eat another bite!"
• Imagine a teddy bear being "stuffed" with cotton to help remember its meaning related to filled objects.
• For the congested meaning, picture someone with a cold saying "I'm s-d-uffed" because they can't pronounce it clearly with a stuffy nose.