nurse

nurse (nûrs)

1. A person educated and trained to care for the sick or disabled.

a. A woman employed to suckle children other than her own; a wet nurse.

b. A woman employed to take care of a child; a nursemaid.

3. One that serves as a nurturing or fostering influence or means: "Town life is the nurse of civilization" C.L.R. James.

4. Zoology A worker ant or bee that feeds and cares for the colony's young.

v. nursed, nurs·ing, nurs·es

v.tr.

1. To serve as a nurse for: nursed the patient back to health.

a. To cause or allow to take milk from the breast: a mother nursing her baby.

b. To feed at the breast of; suckle.

3. To try to cure by special care or treatment: nurse a cough with various remedies.

4. To treat carefully, especially in order to prevent pain: He nursed his injured knee by shifting his weight to the other leg.

5. To manage or guide carefully; look after with care; foster: nursed her business through the depression. See Synonyms at nurture.

6. To bear privately in the mind: nursing a grudge.

7. To consume slowly, especially in order to conserve: nursed one drink all evening.

v.intr.

1. To serve as a nurse.

2. To take nourishment from the breast; suckle.

[Middle English norice, nurse, wet nurse, from Old French norrice, from Vulgar Latin *nutrcia, from Late Latin ntrcia, from feminine of Latin ntrcius, that suckles, from ntrx, ntrc-, wet nurse; see (s)nu- in Indo-European roots.]

nurser n.

nurse

Noun

1. a person trained to look after sick people, usually in a hospital

2. short for nursemaid

Verb

[nursing, nursed]

1. to look after (a sick person)

2. to breast-feed (a baby)

3. (of a baby) to feed at its mother's breast

4. to try to cure (an ailment)

5. to harbour or foster (a feeling)

6. to clasp fondly: she nursed her drink [Latin nutrire to nourish]

nursing nadj

ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms

Noun	1.	nurse - one skilled in caring for young children or the sick (usually under the supervision of a physician) foster-nurse - a nurse who raises another woman's child as her own graduate nurse, trained nurse - someone who has completed the course of study (including hospital practice) at a nurses training school head nurse - the person in charge of nursing in a medical institution caregiver, health care provider, health professional, PCP, primary care provider - a person who helps in identifying or preventing or treating illness or disability licensed practical nurse, LPN, practical nurse - a nurse who has enough training to be licensed by a state to provide routine care for the sick matron - a woman in charge of nursing in a medical institution accoucheuse, midwife - a woman skilled in aiding the delivery of babies probationer, student nurse - a nurse in training who is undergoing a trial period registered nurse, RN - a graduate nurse who has passed examinations for registration scrub nurse - a nurse who helps a surgeon prepare for surgery visiting nurse - a nurse who is paid to visit the sick in their homes nurse-patient relation - the responsibility of a nurse to act in the best interests of the patient
	2.	nurse - a woman who is the custodian of children nanny, nursemaid dry nurse - a nurse who cares for but does not suckle an infant keeper - someone in charge of other people; "am I my brother's keeper?" mammy - an offensive term for a Black nursemaid in the southern U.S. amah, wet nurse, wet-nurse, wetnurse - a woman hired to suckle a child of someone else adult female, woman - an adult female person (as opposed to a man); "the woman kept house while the man hunted"
Verb	1.	nurse - try to cure by special care of treatment, of an illness or injury; "He nursed his cold with Chinese herbs" practice of medicine, medicine - the learned profession that is mastered by graduate training in a medical school and that is devoted to preventing or alleviating or curing diseases and injuries; "he studied medicine at Harvard" care for, treat - provide treatment for; "The doctor treated my broken leg"; "The nurses cared for the bomb victims"; "The patient must be treated right away or she will die"; "Treat the infection with antibiotics"
	2.	nurse - maintain (a theory, thoughts, or feelings); "bear a grudge"; "entertain interesting notions"; "harbor a resentment" harbor, entertain, harbour, hold feel, experience - undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind; "She felt resentful"; "He felt regret"
	3.	nurse - serve as a nurse; care for sick or handicapped people give care, care - provide care for; "The nurse was caring for the wounded"
	4.	nurse - treat carefully; "He nursed his injured back by lying in bed several hours every afternoon"; "He nursed the flowers in his garden and fertilized them regularly" do by, treat, handle - interact in a certain way; "Do right by her"; "Treat him with caution, please"; "Handle the press reporters gently"
	5.	nurse - give suck to; "The wetnurse suckled the infant"; "You cannot nurse your baby in public in some places" breastfeed, give suck, lactate, wet-nurse, suckle, suck suck - draw into the mouth by creating a practical vacuum in the mouth; "suck the poison from the place where the snake bit"; "suck on a straw"; "the baby sucked on the mother's breast" feed, give - give food to; "Feed the starving children in India"; "don't give the child this tough meat"