Phrase guide

warm fuzzy

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A good impression; a feeling of comfort, happiness or trust.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: informal

Examples

  • I suppose they are a reputable business, but I didn't get a warm fuzzy from their salesman.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: cold prickly

2

noun

Meaning 2

A sense of accomplishment after performing an act.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: derogatory, in-plural, informal, often

Examples

  • John picks up litter in our neighborhood because it gives him warm fuzzies.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Coined by Claude Steiner in 1970 for his children's story A Warm Fuzzy Tale, where it is used in a technical sense to illustrate a concept, namely, positive stroke, that is used in a type of therapy called transactional analysis.