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Glite Dictionary
to puddle up

to puddle up

7.6
To gather closely in a small group for warmth or company
  • phrasal verb
  • /ˈpʌdəl ʌp/
  • Informal
translation icon : acurrucarse
  • At the party, the friends decided to puddle up around the fire to keep warm.

Examples

  • During the chilly evening, they puddled up under the blanket, sharing stories and laughter.

  • As the rain started to fall, the kids quickly puddled up beneath the tree to stay dry.

  • Jordan puddles up.

    Fiction book (1997)

Synonyms

to meet up
vsto puddle up
  • Informal
122 1.8

To come together with friends to spend time

gathers by standing very close for warmth or playful group fun
to huddle
vsto puddle up
114 3.1

To stay close together for warmth or safety

gathers more for playful closeness or social warmth
to huddle together
vsto puddle up
13 3.1

Move close together in a small group for warmth or safety

gathers more often for fun or casual warmth than for protection
to bunch up
vsto puddle up
8 3.3

To gather closely into a tight group

gathers with more friendly playful intent and for warmth
to crowd together
vsto puddle up
2 3.0

To stand or move closely in a group

gathers in smaller, friendlier groups often for warmth or fun
to squad up
vsto puddle up
  • Jargon
1 8.9

To form a small team to play together in an online game

forms informal, close groups mainly for warmth or social fun

Antonyms

separate
829 2.1

Not joined to another thing and kept apart

to disperse
104 4.4

To cause people and things, like a crowd or fog, to spread over a wide area

How Close

to puddle up
  • Informal
7.6
to gather
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

puddle up infinitive
puddled up past
puddled up past participle
puddling up present participle
puddles up third person singular

Morphology

puddle + up

There is a visible metaphorical link: 'puddle' (a small pool or to form puddles) plus the particle 'up' suggesting formation or coming together can evoke people clustering like a puddle, so a learner might partially guess the sense. However, 'puddle' as a verb commonly means to splash or form puddles and the clustering sense is a metaphorical extension rather than a standard compositional pattern, so the exact meaning is not fully predictable to a B1 learner without exposure.

Etymology

The phrasal verb puddle up may come from the image of small drops joining to make a puddle. A puddle brings things close in one small place, so to puddle up means 'to gather closely'.