- A person educated and trained to care for the sick or disabled.
- A woman employed to take care of a child; a nursemaid.
- A woman employed to suckle children other than her own; a wet nurse.
- One that serves as a nurturing or fostering influence or means: "Town life is the nurse of civilization" (C.L.R. James).
- Zoology. A worker ant or bee that feeds and cares for the colony's young.
v., nursed, nurs·ing, nurs·es. v.tr.
- To serve as a nurse for: nursed the patient back to health.
- To cause or allow to take milk from the breast: a mother nursing her baby.
- To feed at the breast of; suckle.
- To try to cure by special care or treatment: nurse a cough with various remedies.
- To treat carefully, especially in order to prevent pain: He nursed his injured knee by shifting his weight to the other leg.
- To manage or guide carefully; look after with care; foster: nursed her business through the depression. See synonyms at nurture.
- To bear privately in the mind: nursing a grudge.
- To consume slowly, especially in order to conserve: nursed one drink all evening.
- To serve as a nurse.
- To take nourishment from the breast; suckle.
[Middle English norice, nurse, wet nurse, from Old French norrice, from Vulgar Latin *nutrīcia, from Late Latin nūtrīcia, from feminine of Latin nūtrīcius, that suckles, from nūtrīx, nūtrīc-, wet nurse.]
nurser nurs'er n.
