day care

noun

variants or less commonly daycare or 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 center
day care workers
day-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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
According to a lawsuit filed by the state of Illinois, Villegas-Gonzalez, a 38-year-old father, was driving home from dropping his three-year-old son at day care. Laura Romero, ABC News, 31 Jan. 2026 Conservative YouTuber Nick Shirley, in a video posted last month, alleged nearly 12 day care centers in Minnesota that are receiving public funds are not actually providing any service. Nick Lentz, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026 State health officials could also do the opposite, advocates argue, and cut vaccines from the list Texas day cares, public schools, and colleges abide by. Isabella Cueto, STAT, 29 Jan. 2026 Federal officials have previously cited a video by a right-wing influencer that claimed fraud by Minneapolis day care centers operated by people with Somali backgrounds. Arkansas Online, 24 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for day care

Word History

First Known Use

1898, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of day care was in 1898

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Day care.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/day%20care. Accessed 6 Feb. 2026.

Kids Definition

day care

noun
1
: supervision of and care for children or disabled adults that is provided during the day by a person or organization
2
: a program, facility, or organization offering day care
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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