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Cloy
To cause someone to feel disgust or weariness from an excess of sweetness, richness, or sentiment; to weary by overabundance.
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Imagine This
Imagine biting into a cake whose layers are so rich and sugary that after a few bites your mouth and senses feel overwhelmed; the sweetness cloys your palate and you no longer enjoy the dessert.
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Sounds Like
kloy (rhymes with 'ploy' or 'boy')
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Looks Like
Ends with -oy; visually resembles other short, monosyllabic words like 'joy' or 'ploy'.
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Remember This
Cloy often describes something that becomes excessively sweet, rich, or sentimental to the point of turning you off; the related adjective is cloying.
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Other Forms
cloyedadjective
cloyingadjective
cloysverb
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Connect With
sicken, nauseate, weary, surfeit, overly sentimental, fatigue
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Note
Use cloy to describe something that overdoes sweetness, richness, or sentiment, causing discomfort or fatigue. Do not confuse with milder flavors or pleasant sweetness.
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Study Deeper
Examples
- The dessert quickly cloyed the guests with its overwhelming sweetness.
- The film's constant melodrama began to cloy the audience.
Synonyms
sickennauseatewearyoverindulgeoverwhelm
Antonyms
delightpleaserefresh
Etymology
From Middle English cloyen, of uncertain origin; likely related to Old French cloïer/cloyer meaning to clog, stuff, or fill, reflecting the sense of excessive fullness that becomes unpleasant.
Mnemonic
Mnemonic: Cloy = Close Your Appetite. When something is cloying, it is so sweet or sentimental that it makes you want to close your appetite and stop wanting more.
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Obligation
nounA duty or commitment; something you are bound to do, whether by law, contract, or moral principle.
Mendicant
nounA beggar; a person who lives by begging, often associated with religious orders that rely on alms.
Plight
nounA dangerous, difficult, or precarious situation; as a verb, to pledge or promise (often one's troth).
Similar Words
Related words and words with the same part of speech.
Abandon
verbTo give up completely, to desert or leave behind, or to relinquish a claim, plan, or responsibility.
Abate
verbTo decrease in amount or intensity; to reduce or end something.
Abolish
verbTo formally end or repeal a system, practice, or institution; to officially put an end to something established.
Abridge
verbTo shorten (a text, speech, or other work) by omitting parts; to condense.
Abscond
verbTo depart secretly or flee, especially to avoid detection or arrest.
Absolve
verbTo free someone from blame or responsibility; to pardon or exonerate.
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