Word of the Week: mollycoddle (MAH-lee-kah-dul) Definition (verb) to treat with an excessive or absurd degree of indulgence or attention In Context "You work longer hours than most of your friends, you never know where your next paycheck is coming from and there's no HR team to mollycoddle you when times get tough… it's safe to say that the life of a self-employed worker is one plagued by instabilities." Olivia Petter, The Independent (London), 16 Mar. 2018

Definition (Adjective) Having no practical function; redundant; superfluous. In Context "Given that trial, conviction, and execution were practically foregone conclusions, it may seem otiose to try to establish the grounds on which Darcy and the others were convicted." R. W. Hoyle, The Pilgrimage of Grace and the Politics of the 1530s, 2001.