noun

• (especially UK, Dartmoor) An area of bog where a layer of moss covers a pool of water or mud, presenting a hazard to walkers who may fall through it. (Also in UK and Irish placenames.)
  "There are mires, bogs, and 'featherbeds' or quaking bogs. With the first two, look for the tussocks of heavy grass or rushes around the edges, which offer a relatively firm footing, but if you see a stretch of bright green sphagnum moss, for God's sake stay away from it. The moss is a mat covering a pit of wet ooze; […]"
• (cricket) A soft, slow pitch of predictable bounce.

verb

• (transitive) To treat someone with excessive indulgence; to pamper, cosset or mollycoddle.
• (intransitive) To engage in featherbedding; to employ more workers than necessary to fulfill a labor union requirement.