pad out
B1 informal separable transitive
In simple words
Make a piece of writing or a speech longer by adding things that are not really needed.
Literal meaning: To add padding material to something to make it bigger — the written-content sense extends this literally.
Meanings
1 B1
idiomatic
informal
To make a piece of writing, speech, or presentation longer by adding unnecessary or unimportant material.
"He padded out his essay with irrelevant quotes just to reach the word count."
Grammar: separable
2 B2 neutral
To add physical padding material to an object to make it thicker, softer, or larger.
"The costume designer padded out the shoulders of the jacket to make the actor look more imposing."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Often used critically, suggesting the added content is filler. Common in academic, journalism, and screenwriting contexts. Can also literally mean adding padding material to a physical object.
Commonly used with
essay report speech article chapter presentation
Forms
Base
pad out
I/you/we/they
3rd person
pads out
he/she/it
Past simple
paded out
yesterday
Past participle
paded out
have + pp
-ing form
pading out
continuous
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Synonyms
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