to mother
6
4.8
- verb
- /ˈmʌðər/
- Realizing that most of the girls will mother families someday, the committee feels it is important that they know how families can spend cultural afternoons "for free" at tax-supported museums, concerts, universities, and parks.
Examples
-
After years of trying, they were finally able to mother their first child together.
-
Trying to mother her so she could mother me.
Blog text (24) -
And now let's bring out the star of the show, the mother of my child.
-
Also, in the long term, I'm looking for someone to mother a child with me.
-
I thought, how could I have been a better mother to this unborn person?
-
I've just learned through you being a mother, honestly.
-
I wish my mother were alive so Cora wouldn't have to mother me, feed me.
Fiction book (1998) -
Now Ramona had mothered babies and become heavy in hips and thighs.
Fiction book (1995) -
She decided to mother the abandoned kitten she found in the garden.
-
It was her dream to mother a large family filled with love and laughter.
Synonyms
7
8.1
To give birth to a child or young animal
2
3.0
To make young animals or plants
1
7.2
To cause the birth of children or young animals
Idioms
- Offensive
7
9.9
A very rude insult that shows extreme anger at someone by insulting their mother
Phrasal Verbs
Compounds
- Formal
14
6.1
The mother of the current king or queen who keeps the title after her child becomes ruler
7
6.0
A smooth shiny layer inside some shells that shows rainbow colours and is used for decoration
3
4.3
A woman who cares for someone like a mother, often with or instead of their own mother
- Literature
1
9.9
An ancient Phrygian goddess worshipped for nature and fertility, often shown with lions
- Archaic
1
9.9
A loose dress without a belt that falls straight from the shoulders, with a high neck and long sleeves
- Slur
1
9.9
A mother wrongly blamed in the past for causing her child's autism because she seemed cold
- Specialized
1
6.5
A cell that makes another cell during the growth or reproduction of a living thing
1
8.8
An indoor plant with large dark leaves that can make your tongue and throat swell if eaten
1
9.9
A low, fragrant plant with small purple and white flowers that grows close to the ground
1
9.9
A high cloud that looks shiny with rainbow colors around sunrise or after sunset
1
9.9
A small plant with many red and white flowers that spreads by long thin stems
A small seabird that flies low over the sea and often appears before storms
- Baby Talk
A small nursery rhyme character a child shows on their thumb to teach finger names
- Baby Talk
A simple game for children using the thumb and four fingers to help them move well
- Specialized
A cell in plants, fungi, or algae that divides to make four spores with half the usual genes
Surface Forms
Etymology
To mother (verb) comes from the same old word for 'female parent', so to mother someone can mean to give birth to them or to be their female parent. That is why mother is used for the act of having or becoming a parent.