hygge

ˈhuːɡənoun

What does hygge mean?

A feeling of cozy contentment: warmth, good company, nothing to do.

Hygge, six ways

PlainA feeling of cozy contentment: warmth, good company, nothing to do.
ADHDCozy. Candles, blankets, friends. Nowhere to be.
Gen ZPeak cozy. Rain outside, soup inside, phone face down.
MetaphorA lit window on a dark street, seen from inside.
FormalA quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality, regarded as a feature of Danish culture.
Like I’m 5Feeling warm, cozy, and happy, like under a blanket with hot chocolate. That’s hygge.

How to pronounce hygge

HOO-guh/ˈhuːɡə/

Hygge in a sentence

The cabin was all hygge: wool, wood, and candlelight.
Rainy Sunday, soup on the stove: peak hygge.
Long Danish winters made hygge a national art.

Synonyms for hygge

cozinessPlainer; hygge adds company and calm.
comfortWider, for any ease.
snugnessPhysical warmth and closeness.

Where hygge comes from

Danish and Norwegian. Related to an old word for comfort, and possibly, far back, to hug.

Good to know

It names a mood more than a thing: warmth, ease and people you like. In English it is a noun, a bit of hygge; the Danish adjective is hyggelig.

Hygge meaning, on a Gloss card: A feeling of cozy contentment: warmth, good company, nothing to do.

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In: Untranslatable words · Words for feelings · Words with a story