helicopter parent

Definition of helicopter parent

: a parent who is overly involved in the life of his or her child

Examples of helicopter parent in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The same goes for the millions of other helicopter parents and tiger moms who pay private-school tuition in hopes of getting their child into First Choice University. — Andrew G. Biggs, National Review, "Aunt Becky and the ‘Underpaid Teachers’ Myth," 2 Dec. 2019 My mother, Nurse Vivian, had been a helicopter parent since Leonardo da Vinci designed the aerial screw. — Kevin Fisher-paulson, SFChronicle.com, "Fleet Week holds lessons for helicopter parents," 21 Oct. 2019 For example, when kids are young, being a helicopter parent might lead to fewer bumps and bruises. — Marisa Lascala, Good Housekeeping, "What Is Helicopter Parenting? Experts Say It's Too Much For Kids," 8 Apr. 2019 But what about freakishly strong, helicopter parents? — Amy Woodyatt, CNN, "World's biggest frogs are so strong they move heavy rocks to build their own ponds," 9 Aug. 2019 Amy is a mother who really wants the best for her son, and there’s that new term of parenting: The snowplow parent is the new helicopter parent, talking about parents who want to clear the path for their kids instead of preparing them for the path. — Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, "Naomi Watts reveals Octavia Spencer is the reason she joined Luce," 31 July 2019 These were working architects and midcentury parents who were not helicopter parents. — Carolina A. Miranda, latimes.com, "Amanda Kolson Hurley says suburbs were sites of experimentation — and could be again," 25 June 2019 Move over, helicopter parents and tiger moms — a whole new breed of terrifying moms and dads has arrived, just in time for the new school year: the lawn mower parent. — Janine Puhak, Fox News, "'Lawn mower parents' are the new 'helicopter moms'," 18 Sep. 2018 Sophie, the older and bolder of the two sisters, has recently recovered from a mysterious illness and lengthy hospital stay, leaving Claire to both hero-worship her older sibling and fret about her like a helicopter parent. — Christopher Healy, New York Times, "Fantasies for Young Readers, With an Eye on Today’s Fears and Divisions," 26 Jan. 2018

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

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Last Updated

6 Dec 2019

Cite this Entry

“Helicopter parent.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/helicopter%20parent. Accessed 12 December 2019.

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