fondling
/ˈfɒndlɪŋ/
fondling noun: a foolish person. Also the present participle and gerund of fondle.
Noun (1)
fondling (plural fondlings)
- A foolish person.
- Yet were her words and lookes but false and fayned, / To some hid end to make more easie way, / Or to allure such fondlings whom she trayned / Into her trap […].1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book VI, Canto VI”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC
- 'How can you say I am harsh, you naughty fondling?' cried the mistress, amazed at the unreasonable assertion.1847, Emily Brontë, chapter 10, in Wuthering Heights, volume I
- A pet or person who is fondled; someone who is much loved.
Noun (2)
IPA/ˈfɒnd(ə)lɪŋ/
fondling (plural fondlings)
- The act of caressing; manifestation of tenderness.
- amorous fondling1835, Emma Whitehead, Pierce Falcon, the Outcast
Also used as
fondling is also the present participle and gerund of fondle.
Forms of fondling
| plural | fondlings |
|---|
Origin of fondling
From fond + -ling.
From fondle + -ing.
Words formed from fondling
Questions about fondling
- What does fondling mean?
- Fondling means a foolish person.
- What part of speech is fondling?
- Fondling is a noun.
- How do you pronounce fondling?
- Fondling is pronounced /ˈfɒndlɪŋ/.
- What is the plural of fondling?
- The plural of fondling is fondlings.
Words near fondling in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: fondling (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-fondling.wav.
Cite this entry: “fondling.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/fondling. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.