Beautiful German Words
Kummerspeck
KOOM-er-shpek
The weight you gain from comfort-eating — and yes, Germans named that too.
What it means
Kummerspeck literally means “grief bacon”: the extra weight you put on from comfort-eating through a hard time. It is Kummer (sorrow) + Speck (bacon, fat).
It is affectionate rather than harsh — a knowing wink at a very human habit. Break-up ice cream, stress biscuits, sadness snacks: all pure Kummerspeck.
In real sentences
Nach der Trennung hatte er etwas Kummerspeck.
After the break-up he’d put on a little grief-weight.
After the break-up he’d put on a little grief-weight.
Das ist alles nur Kummerspeck.
It’s all just comfort-eating weight.
It’s all just comfort-eating weight.
Word family
Speck (bacon/fat) is wonderfully common in German — Speck ansetzen means “to put on weight.” Kummer (sorrow) also gives Liebeskummer, the heartache of love.
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