babysit

verb

ba·​by·​sit ˈbā-bē-ˌsit 

babysat ˈbā-bē-ˌsat  ; babysitting

intransitive verb

: to care for children usually during a short absence of the parents

broadly : to give care

babysit for a neighbor's pets

transitive verb

: to babysit for

She babysits her grandchildren.

broadly : mind, tend

babysit house plants

police babysitting a witness

babysitter noun

Examples of babysit in a Sentence

She babysits their kids on Saturday nights.

Recent Examples on the Web

However, Sadie Sink, Max Mayfield in the show, has also been given a pass to babysit. —Janelle Ash, FOXNews.com, 8 Nov. 2025

Cass agrees to babysit their work crush Kalli’s (Louisa Krause) 11-year old daughter Ari (Ridley Asha Bateman), but when Kalli fails to return, memories of Cass’ own difficult childhood begin to resurface, sending them on a healing journey with Ari. —Glenn Garner, Deadline, 31 Oct. 2025

After news broke that Puth and his wife are expecting their first baby together, Winfrey shared a comment on Billboard's Instagram offering to babysit. —Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025

Did Ed Gein actually babysit children? —Jr Radcliffe, jsonline.com, 6 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from babysitter

First Known Use

1944, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Kids Definition

babysit

verb

ba·​by·​sit ˈbā-bē-ˌsit 

babysat -ˌsat  ; babysitting

: to care for children usually while the parents are away for a short time

babysitter noun