What does indulger mean?
An indulger is someone who allows other people to have or do what they want, often more readily than is considered necessary. The word is especially associated with indulgent parenting, as in a parent who spoils a child or accommodates every request. It can also describe a person who gives way to personal appetites, whims, or luxurious pleasures, with the suggestion of excess. Its tone therefore ranges from affectionate to disapproving according to context. Although relatively uncommon in everyday speech, “indulger” usefully identifies the person responsible for a particular act of indulgence: the indulger grants the wish, while “indulgence” names the act or the permitted gratification itself.
nounA person who indulges another person, appetite, or desire, especially by allowing them to do or have something they want.
- A person who indulges another, especially a child, by allowing that person to have or do something desired.
- A person who gratifies an appetite, whim, or personal desire, often with negative connotations of excess or self-indulgence.
"Far from being a disciplinarian, he was a generous indulger of his children's wishes."
"The older sister was always the indulger, allowing her younger brother to choose every family activity."
"By the end of the holiday, even the most disciplined among them had become an indulger of rich food and late nights."
Normally used in the plural for a group of people who act as indulgers.
"The novel portrays indulgers who spare their children every restriction."
An indulger grants the wish; an indulgence is the granting itself.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does indulger come from?
“Indulger” was formed in English as an agent-noun formation meaning “one who indulges,” with the suffix “-er.” The related verb “indulge” comes through Old French from Latin indulgere, “to permit or grant,” ultimately associated with Latin in- and dulcis, “sweet.” English later developed the noun “indulgence” and the adjective “indulgent” from the same verbal root.
How indulger is actually used
The term can be approving when it describes someone who is generous or affectionate, but it is often mildly critical when it implies excessive gratification, leniency, or self-indulgence.
Easily confused with indulger
An indulger is a person who permits or gratifies someone's wishes, whereas an indulgence is the act of granting or enjoying such gratification.