What does chocaholic mean?
Chocaholic is an informal noun for someone who has a strong or seemingly uncontrollable craving for chocolate. It is typically playful rather than clinical, comparing a person's enthusiasm for chocolate with the language of addiction and compulsion. The word can be affectionate, as when describing a dedicated member of a family who always chooses chocolate cake, or teasing, as when joking that someone has become completely dependent on sweets. It is used in both British and American English, although chocoholic is also a common spelling. The word is especially useful when the speaker wants to emphasize indulgence, enthusiasm, or a familiar stereotype about loving chocolate. Like other humorous labels ending in “-aholic,” it relies on exaggeration for effect and should not be read as a medical diagnosis.
nounAn informal term for someone who has a strong or apparently uncontrollable craving for chocolate. The word humorously treats a love of chocolate as a form of addiction.
- A person who has a strong or apparently uncontrollable craving for chocolate.
"Her sister is such a chocaholic that she keeps a chocolate bar hidden in every room."
"After one taste of the truffles, the chocaholic ordering immediately went back for seconds."
"The advertisement was aimed at chocaholics who supposedly would not choose plain cake when chocolate was available."
The regular plural is used when referring to more than one chocaholic, particularly in informal descriptions of chocolate enthusiasts.
"The bakery has loyal chocaholics who visit every week."
Chocaholic turns a simple fondness for chocolate into a mock medical condition: a chocaholic is humorously presented as chocolate-dependent.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does chocaholic come from?
Chocaholic is a 20th-century blend of chocolate, shortened to choc, and the combining form -aholic, a form modeled on alcoholic. The suffix humorously suggests compulsive dependence, so the word combines the idea of chocolate with the language of addiction. The alternative spelling chocoholic has the same blend and is also widely used in English.
Related word forms
How chocaholic is actually used
Informal and often humorous or mildly teasing. It describes a strong enthusiasm or craving for chocolate, not a recognized medical condition, and may be used disparagingly about someone who prefers chocolate excessively.
Easily confused with chocaholic
Chocaholic and chocoholic are spelling variants of the same noun; chocaholic uses “-a-,” while chocoholic uses “-o-.”