1
as in to nurse
to give milk to from the breast
wet-nursed the woman's baby until she was well enough to do it herself
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2
as in to spoil
to treat with great or excessive care
recent college grads quickly learn that employers won't wet-nurse them the way that their teachers did
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Recent Examples of wet-nurse
With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse.
—
Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2024
In von Horn’s pic, set in post WW1 Copenhagen, the focal point is Karoline (Sonne), a young pregnant factory worker, who takes on the job of a wet-nurse for the charismatic Dagmar (Dyrholm) in order to escape poverty.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 19 May 2024
Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2024
In von Horn’s pic, set in post WW1 Copenhagen, the focal point is Karoline (Sonne), a young pregnant factory worker, who takes on the job of a wet-nurse for the charismatic Dagmar (Dyrholm) in order to escape poverty.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 19 May 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wet-nurse
Verb
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In their off-hours, one employee was nursing an infant and homeschooling a preschooler, and another worked a second job as a real estate agent.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 Mar. 2026
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The Commodores are nursing a 3-point lead early in the second half against the McNeese State Cowboys from Lake Charles, Louisiana.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
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As Cuba’s economic crisis deepens and amid the fuel shortages and the blackouts, hospitals have been hard hit, leaving patients in the dark and medicine at risk of spoiling.—
Carmen Sesin,
NBC news,
18 Mar. 2026
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The city's residents are concerned about food spoiling and simply trying to maneuver in homes with no lighting.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The pups have the epicurean delight of suckling one of the highest fat-content milks in the animal kingdom.—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
24 Nov. 2025
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Those people under him are suckling on his piggly-wiggly titties.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The brothers were each two years apart in age, but younger siblings were never babied; Nick recalled being on the receiving end of numerous pummelings by his older brothers.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
30 Jan. 2026
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Each new piece was crafted to be simple, functional, and beautiful, giving parents peace of mind and babies a nurturing space to grow.—
Suzanne Blake,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Dec. 2025
Verb
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One way to combat that, as a gardener, is to start plants by seed instead of buying plants that someone else has started, watered and mothered for months.—
Henry Homeyer,
The Providence Journal,
13 Mar. 2026
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Barrington Elementary For more than a decade, Claudia Lopez joined other Barrington Elementary School mothers to cook a meal of turkey, potato salad, mashed potatoes, cornbread and chocoflan for Thanksgiving.—
Keri Heath,
Austin American Statesman,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wet-nurse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wet-nurse. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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