day care

noun

variants: or less commonly daycare \ ˈdā-ˌker

\ or day-care

Definition of day care

1 : supervision of and care for children or physically or mentally disabled adults that is provided during the day by a person or organization —often used before another noun a day care centerday care workersday-care facilities

2 : a program, facility, or organization offering day care a child enrolled in day care

Examples of day care in a Sentence

She left work early to pick up her son from day care.

Recent Examples on the Web Guide cannot list overnight camps, activities that take place in private homes, commercial day care centers or vacation Bible schools. — Dallas News, "Submit your kids camp or class info for 2021 Parents’ Guide to Summer by March 8," 4 Feb. 2021 This is true in grocery stores and pharmacies and day care centers across the U.S., where essential workers—the majority of them women of color—are keeping shelves stocked, families supplied, and children safely playing and learning. — Melinda Gates, Time, "Melinda Gates: Why Women's Voices Must Be at the Center of Rebuilding After COVID-19," 15 Jan. 2021 Barbie and Ken wind up living happily ever after at the day care. — Carly Mallenbaum, USA TODAY, "'Toy Story' turns 25: Ranking the best villains," 20 Nov. 2020 Brandon Weems, the director of scouting for the Cleveland Cavaliers, told CNN affiliate WEWS that his sister ran a day care at her residence. — David Close, CNN, "LeBron James asks public to help find the killer of his friend's sister," 4 Nov. 2020 The sheriff’s office refused to name the day care, saying that the victims opted into Marsy’s Law, and that naming the facility could have identified the children to the public. — Ryan Gabrielson, ProPublica, "How Cops Who Use Force and Even Kill Can Hide Their Names From the Public," 31 Oct. 2020 The sheriff’s office refused to name the day care, saying that the victims opted into Marsy’s Law, and that naming the facility could have identified the children to the public. — USA Today, "Marsy’s Law was meant to protect crime victims. It now hides the identities of cops who use force.," 29 Oct. 2020 Contract tracers determined the child was the third in an infection chain that began with an employee who last worked at the day care May 29. — Joe Carlson, Star Tribune, "Minnesota schools grapple with shifts in COVID-19 cases," 29 Sep. 2020 The day care and preschool will serve a maximum of 160 children and operate from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., the planning and zoning commission was told. — Jennifer Johnson, chicagotribune.com, "Day care coming to Park Ridge office building; plans for apartments scrapped," 10 Sep. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'day care.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.