zaftig

English

Alternative forms

• zoftig, zaftige

Etymology

From Yiddish זאַפֿטיק (zaftik), cognate to German saftig (“juicy”). Doublet of sappy.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈzæf.tɪɡ/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈzɑf.tɪɡ/

Adjective

zaftig (comparative more zaftig, superlative most zaftig)

1. (US, colloquial, of a woman) Having a plump and sexually attractive figure; voluptuous, well-proportioned; large.

   Synonyms: buxom, Rubenesque, voluptuous; see also Thesaurus:voluptuous

   • 1953, Saul Bellow, chapter XXII, in The Adventures of Augie March, New York: Viking Press, →OCLC, page 460:

     By his description the same broad. A zaftige piece too, in a mink stole.

   • 1980, Washington Journalism Review, volume 2:

     Sportcasters are drawn from three different talent pools. Some are professional media people, others are ex-coaches and the most zaftig lot are ex-players.

   • 1980, Robert A. Heinlein, chapter VII, in The Number of the Beast, part one, pages 61–62:

     Well, a certain zaftig coed told this on herself. She tried to give her all to Brainy in exchange for a passing grade in the general math course necessary to any degree on our campus. […] "Brainy" didn't accept, didn't refuse, wasn't offended, didn't seem to understand. He told her that she had better talk to her instructor about getting tutoring and a re-exam. Now Miss Zaftig is circulating the story that Prof "No Brain" must be a eunuch or a robot. Not even a homo. Totally sexless.

   • 1992, Sonic Youth (lyrics and music), “100%”, in Dirty‎^[1]:

     But I've been waiting for you just to say / The zoftig chick is mine / But all I know is you got no money / But that's got nothing to do with a good time

   • 1996, Gay Morris, “Moving Words: Re-Writing Dance”, in Gay Morris, editor, 9: "Styles of the Flesh": Gender in the Dances of Mark Morris, page 152:

     Mrs Stahlbaum, a much more zaftig figure than the Housekeeper, wears a strawberry blonde wig with bangs, her hair tied back in a bun.

   • 2000 January 22, “D.C. 90210”, in Time‎^[2], archived from the original on 2012-03-11:

     1995 Clinton has his first sexual encounter with zaftig intern Lewinsky.

   • 2011, Marlene Zuk, Sex on Six Legs: Lessons on Life, Love, and Language from the Insect World, page 156:

     And being fatter at the outset meant you had more to offer; scrawnier mothers were consumed sooner than their more zaftig counterparts, which then meant that the young spiders were less likely to turn from their parent to an arguably even more unsavory occupation: eating each other.

   • 2022, Jennifer Egan, “What the Forest Remembers”, in The Candy House:

     Tor's “old lady,” Bari, is a warmer zaftig presence.

Translations

plump and voluptuous

• Czech: kyprý, vnadný (cs)
• Danish: sanselig
• French: voluptueux (fr), somptueux (fr)
• German: üppig (de), wollüstig (de), verlockend (de)
• Latin: sūcidus
• Plautdietsch: druglich
• Yiddish: זאַפֿטיק (zaftik)

Further reading

• Jonathon Green (2024) “zaftig adj.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang