在英语中，关于"胖"，我们首先想到的就是"fat"。但"fat"在英语中是个强烈的贬义词，是"愚笨"，"迟缓"，"自制力差"的标志，所以在西方如果说某人"fat"，不仅是对别人的伤害与歧视，也是自身粗鲁无教养的表现。

那应该如何恰当而又有礼貌地表达"胖"、"丰满"呢?下面是一些常见的委婉语，不论是翻译还是口语都很有用。

1.gain weight增加体重

例如：People who drink diet soft drinks don’t lose weight. They gain weight, a new study finds.

2.super size person超大之人

例如：No more hamburgers, I don’t want to be a super size person.

3.heavyset身子重的,体格粗壮、敦实的

例如：He was tall and heavyset.

nutritionally endowed营养丰富的

例如：Though garlic is a nutritionally endowed food, it is only consumed in small amounts.

4.gravitationally challenged

受地球引力挑战的(增加的体重确实在挑战地球引力)

例如：That girl is gravitationally challenged.

5.well-built体格健美的，体型匀称的

例如：That girl is well-built.

6.stout结实的，壮实的

例如：She is getting too stout for her dresses.

7.big-boned骨架大的

例如：I’m not fat, just big-boned.

8.overweight超重的

例如：Overweight in a child should not be neglected.

9.chubby胖呼呼的(多指小孩和女子)

例如：The baby has a chubby face.

10.buxom形象健康丰满的，健美的

例如：A generation ago, fat babies were considered healthy and buxom actresses were popular, but society has since come to worship thinness.

同样，"瘦"不能说"skinny"，这可是"皮包骨"的意思(时尚界的许多模特正在朝这个方向发展)，要形容一个人苗条应该用"slender"，"slim"，或"delicate"。"减肥"则可以说"lose weight"。

总之，"胖"和"瘦"是英美人敏感的话题，"fat "和"skinny"的使用要十分小心，注意回避。但是有一个例外就是" phat "(妙，好，酷)，是"fat "的异体词，在口语中常常用于赞美美妙的东西，相当于"cool "。例如"The car is really a phat. "