padded
UK[ˈpædɪd]US[ˈpædɪd]
adj
filled or covered with soft material to add thickness, protection, or comfort.
adj
(of writing or speech) made longer or more substantial by adding unnecessary content.
Morpheme Breakdown
pad
ed
pad
cushion
ed
adjective suffix
Etymology
the word 'padded' is a straightforward english formation from the noun 'pad', which emerged in the 16th century referring to a soft cushion or bundle. the origin of 'pad' itself is obscure but may be connected to low german or dutch words for a sole or path, later evolving to mean something soft to walk on or lie upon. the suffix '-ed', an ancient germanic adjectival form, is attached to create the meaning 'furnished with or characterized by a pad'. this construction logically yields the modern senses, from physically cushioned objects to figuratively inflated text.
Analysis
Structure: pad (cushion) + ed (adjective suffix)
pad (origin: 16th century, of uncertain origin, possibly from or related to 'pad' meaning a bundle of straw to lie on; functional role: root, denoting a soft cushioning material). ed (origin: old english -ed, -od, -ad; functional role: suffix forming adjectives from nouns or verbs, indicating 'provided with' or 'characterized by').
Examples
the baby's playpen has padded walls for safety.
she wore a padded jacket to stay warm in the winter.
the report was heavily padded with irrelevant statistics to meet the page count.