English noun: featherbed | |||
1. | featherbed (artifact) a mattress stuffed with feathers | ||
Synonyms | feather bed | ||
Broader (hypernym) | mattress | ||
English verb: featherbed | |||
1. | featherbed (social) treat with excessive indulgence | ||
Samples | Grandparents often pamper the children. Let's not mollycoddle our students!. | ||
Synonyms | baby, cocker, coddle, cosset, indulge, mollycoddle, pamper, spoil | ||
Pattern of use | Somebody ----s somebody | ||
Broader (hypernym) | do by, handle, treat | ||
2. | featherbed (communication) hire more workers than are necessary | ||
Pattern of use | Something ----s. Somebody ----s | ||
Broader (hypernym) | employ, engage, hire | ||