The Rice University Neologisms Database

In a state of sadness in which one desires to be hugged to feel comforted. ("I felt so hugry after I broke up with Charlie.") Apparent Meaning: The state of wanting to be hugged. The term sounds very much like HUNGRY, which describes the state of desire for food. The root word in HUGRY is the noun HUG, which means to hold closely or embrace as a sign of comfort or affection. The term HUG was added to the end –RY from HUNGRY to create the word HUGRY, which sounds much like HUNGRY. Possible Reason Used: The term was used when a girl felt really sad after breaking up with her boyfriend. The sudden lack of her boyfriend’s affection made her feel in need of a hug to comfort her. However, it is believed that the term was originally created incidentally. A girl in a similar situation was feeling very sad after a difficult breakup. In addition, she had a congested nose due to a cold. When she tried to express her desire for food by saying, “I’m hungry,” she sounded as if she had said, “I’m hugry,” which was interpreted as a desire to be hugged because she was feeling sad. Congestion in her nose had made it difficult for her to produce the nasal sound of “ng,” which is normally made by stopping airflow in mouth, but allowing it to continue flowing through nasal tract. Air that could not flow through nasal tract tried to flow in mouth, producing the “g” sound and the resulting neologism, HUGRY.