Meaning & use
huggers
Last updated
“huggers” is a form of “hugger”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounpluralinformal
People who tend to hug others warmly, especially when they greet someone.
Grammar: Plural of hugger; often described with an adjective such as big.
Patterns
- big huggers
In my family we are all big huggers.
The twins are huggers, so expect a hug at the door.
Some huggers squeeze so tightly you can hardly breathe.
nounpluralinformal
Things or people that stay very close to something, as in tree huggers or shoreline huggers.
Grammar: Used as the second part of compounds: kerb huggers, wall huggers.
Patterns
- something huggers
Cautious drivers are often curb huggers.
The coast path was full of shoreline huggers who never left the water's edge.
Some skiers are tree huggers on the narrow forest runs.
nounpluraldisapprovinginformal
A disapproving or joking term for people who strongly support protecting nature, usually in the phrase tree huggers.
Grammar: Only in the compound tree huggers; it can sound mocking.
Patterns
- tree huggers
Some politicians dismissed the protesters as tree huggers.
The tree huggers camped by the oak to stop the road.
He proudly calls himself one of the tree huggers.
Word forms
| singular | hugger |
|---|
Common combinations
- tree huggers
- The tree huggers formed a ring around the old oak.
- big huggers
- They are big huggers and greet everyone with an embrace.
- serial huggers
- The new coach is one of those serial huggers.
- curb huggers
- The slow bikers were curb huggers.
- shoreline huggers
- The kayakers were shoreline huggers on a windy day.
Synonyms and how they differ
- embracers
- Embracers is much less common and sounds stiff, while huggers is the natural informal word for people who like to hug.
- cuddlers
- Cuddlers suggests longer, gentler closeness, often with pets or a partner, rather than a quick greeting hug.
- environmentalists
- Environmentalists is a neutral term for people who care about nature, whereas tree huggers is informal and can be mocking.
Word family
Commonly confused: huggers or hookers?
huggers vs hookers
Hookers is an unrelated word with a different, impolite meaning; do not mix up the similar spelling.
Practice
My cousins are huge ___, and they hug everyone when they arrive.
Choose one answer.
Huggers are people who like to hug. Hackers, hunters and hikers are real words but do not fit the sentence.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “huggers”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.