14

How should I translate “cuddly”, as in cuddly puppy?

The dictionaries I checked say “de peluche”, but isn’t that a stuffed animal? Or “adorable”, but not all adorable animals are cuddly (baby whales, for example). Or “acogedor”, which means “welcoming”...

Can that be used in this sense?

DGaleano
  • 10,622
  • 5
  • 32
  • 57
Arrendajo
  • 143
  • 1
  • 6
  • 2
    From the answers I can tell that this badly needs a regional tag. What region do you pretend to use this word on? You will get a better answer if you tell us a target region. – DGaleano Jul 13 '20 at 18:11
  • My friends with whom I speak Spanish are from Peru, Chile and Central America. – Arrendajo Jul 13 '20 at 23:06
  • 1
    @DGaleano: "What region do you claim/intend/? to use this word on?". pretend means something entirely different. – smci Jul 14 '20 at 19:58
  • @smci Sure.Thanks. It is my native Spanish speaker brain playing tricks on me. – DGaleano Jul 14 '20 at 20:02
  • Thank you for your thorough answers. They were all helpful, but I “accepted” the one that seemed to have the widest acceptance in Latin America, which is the area I was interested in. I will make that clear in future questions. – Arrendajo Jul 25 '20 at 18:42

4 Answers4

17

Probably you'll have several options, but I'm going to propose "mimoso".

A cuddle is

a prolonged and affectionate hug.

and "to cuddle"

hold close in one's arms as a way of showing love or affection.

So I'm think that the key to the connotation of this word if the affectionate, loving, touch.

"Cuddly" would be "pleasant to cuddle" o "wanting to cuddle".

In Spanish, "mimoso" means:

  1. adj. Melindroso, muy aficionado a caricias, regalón.

This adjective comes from "mimo", which is

  1. m. Cariño, halago o demostración de ternura.

Which I think conveys pretty well the meaning of "cuddle", and so, "mimoso" conveys pretty well "cuddly".

A "cuddly puppy" would be a "perrito (o cachorro) mimoso" (a puppy who is affectionate and likes giving and receiving demonstrations of affection).

Diego
  • 48,072
  • 36
  • 141
  • 266
  • 1
    "Mimoso" will NOT work in Colombia. En Colombia funciona apechichable Apechichar – DGaleano Jul 13 '20 at 18:06
  • 1
    It will neither work in Chile, probably only in Spain takes the connotation you are suggesting. In Chile, girls would say, ¡uy, qué tierno!, with a special intonation like having a maternal feeling. – Andrés Chandía Jul 14 '20 at 19:23
8

What do you reckon about achuchable? It quite sounds like what you'd do to a teddy bear.

rturrado
  • 219
  • 1
  • 4
  • 3
    Exactamente. Al buscar en google Achuchar la traducción automática es cuddle. Eso si, válido solo para España creo. Yo nunca habia escuchado esa palabra hasta hoy.+1 – DGaleano Jul 13 '20 at 19:30
  • 3
    En España es un término bastante común. Decimos achuchar o dar un achuchón y significa abrazar fuerte y cariñosamente. – rturrado Jul 13 '20 at 19:39
3

Diego's answer is for Castilian Spanish. To say this to a Latin American, you should use the word abrazable, assuming you have the intent to actually cuddle rather than just describe a look, if you were to physically describe I would say something more common such as bonito. If you call abrazable to a opposite sex person it would be extremely awkward.

another-dev
  • 146
  • 2
  • 2
    Cuddly is not a verb, so I don’t understand “this is assuming you’re meaning cuddly as a verb.” – gen-ℤ ready to perish Jul 13 '20 at 15:55
  • 1
    "Mimoso" works in Argentina and Uruguay as well, "Abrazable" would feel out of place. – Chebi Jul 13 '20 at 17:22
  • 1
    "Mimoso" will NOT work in Colombia. En Colombia funciona Apechichar – DGaleano Jul 13 '20 at 18:06
  • 1
    I agree that Diego's answer is not general but from @Chebi ;s comment I think you should modify your answer and say where will "abrazable" work. – DGaleano Jul 13 '20 at 18:13
  • 1
    @Chebi: I grew up in Argentina, 40km from Uruguay. I would say "abrazable" and it would feel really weird to say "mimoso". In particular, "mimoso" would never imply a quality of the subject, but rather a disposition. – Martin Argerami Jul 15 '20 at 01:29
  • @MartinArgerami right, but so does "cuddly". https://dictionary.cambridge.org/es/diccionario/ingles/cuddly defines it as: "liking to cuddle, or making you want to cuddle". "Mimoso" would fit, especially when talking about a puppy, and it's a more commonly used word. That's why I suggested it. "Abrazable" to me falls into the category of nouns made adjectives that sometimes are redundant. Sure, if something can break you could say it's "rompible" but you could also say it's "frágil", and to me that fits better. – Chebi Jul 17 '20 at 14:17
3

Based on the context from where you are translating 'cariñoso' could be a very good match for translation nevertheless if the destination is to Castilian Spanish or Latin American Spanish.

The object qualified by this adjective could actually have this characteristic or just inspire the observer or receiver to feel it this way.

Again, depending on the context you could select the best translation, always remembering that English translations based on general ideas are more accurate and appropriated than literal translations.

jpotterh
  • 31
  • 4
  • 1
    I don't think cariñoso would work, that means affectionate, not cuddly. The word cuddly implies physical contact, cuddling. But most importantly, it describes the object/person you want to cuddle, the thing you want to hug and not the feelings you feel which make you want to hug it as cariñoso does. – terdon Jul 14 '20 at 08:46