What does fattish mean?
'Fattish' is an informal adjective meaning somewhat fat — noticeably plump or overweight, yet short of outright obesity. Formed by attaching the common English suffix '-ish', which signals approximation ('youngish', 'tallish'), to the ancient word 'fat', it describes a moderate degree of stoutness in people, animals, or even bulky objects. In everyday use it tends to carry a gently humorous or tolerant connotation rather than a harsh one; a 'fattish man' or a 'fattish cat' is affectionately rounded rather than condemned. That said, because any comment on weight can wound, the word belongs more comfortably in descriptive prose, light fiction, and casual speech than in direct personal remarks. It is a useful word precisely because it occupies the middle ground that blunter terms miss: neither lean nor obese, simply a little heavy. For writers seeking precision with a soft edge, 'fattish' captures that inexact, forgiving middle zone of body size better than almost any alternative.
adjectiveSomewhat fat; moderately plump or overweight, but not extremely so.
- Somewhat fat; moderately plump or corpulent, used of people or animals and occasionally of things that appear bulky or thick.
"He was a fattish, cheerful man who always kept a tin of biscuits on his desk."
"The fattish tabby sprawled across the sunny windowsill, clearly well fed."
"He had grown fattish over the winter, a fact his tailor mentioned with delicate tact."
Change just two letters and 'fattish' becomes 'faddish' — the difference between describing someone's waistline and their taste in trends.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of fattish
'Fattish' is formed from 'fat', a word rooted in Old English 'fǣtt', meaning fattened or well-fed, combined with the suffix '-ish', long used in English to mark an approximate or moderate degree of a quality. The compound thus follows a well-worn pattern of English adjective formation seen in words like 'biggish' and 'oldish'. Its sibling derivations from the same root include 'fatten', 'fatness', and the old term 'fatling', used for a young animal fattened for slaughter. The word has been in modest, informal use for centuries without ever becoming a core vocabulary term.
How fattish is actually used
'Fattish' is informal and mildly evaluative; because it comments on body size, it can cause offence and is best reserved for light descriptive writing, humour, or descriptions of animals rather than direct remarks about people.
Easily confused with fattish
While 'fattish' means somewhat fat, 'faddish' means characteristic of a passing fashion or craze — the two differ by only a couple of letters but nothing else.