MOTHERING Synonyms: 75 Similar and Opposite Words

mothering 1 of 2

noun

as in motherhood

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mothering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of mother

as in having

to bring forth from the womb I hope to mother at least one child

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in nursing

to attend to the needs and comforts of mothered the patients with chicken soup

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of mothering

Noun

The cultural ascendance of intensive mothering, in which mothers are deemed entirely responsible for their children’s well-being and success, has upped the ante. — Marianne Cooper, Time, 5 Aug. 2026 To make their point perfectly clear, women are sharing photos of themselves breastfeeding in front of Old Masters paintings in museums that depict the very same mothering act. — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 6 July 2026 Yet the history of motherhood has remained largely untold, and the narrative is not often driven by the people who do the actual mothering. — Holly Corbett, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026 Each statue the perfect epitome of silent, mothering, virginal womanhood that Ireland had come to worship. — Literary Hub, 8 May 2026 Suzanne O’Donnell, an accomplished regional theater actor with a lot of Shakespeare on her resume, plays Penrose as both a warm mothering figure to these two occasionally babyish men but does not downplay the character’s pragmatic side. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2026 For almost a century, since the dawn of mass screen entertainment, society has passed through waves of panic over media’s effects on children, which have often coincided with panics over the effects of various kinds of mothering. — Jean Garnett, New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2026 In response to the mothering of a sister, a brother has options—resist, lash out, put up with it, become utterly dependent on it. — Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026 Kate had changed her hair into a stylish bob — but apparently hadn’t updated her mothering skills — two years later when, in the sequel, Kevin again was discovered missing, at the Miami airport. — Jocelyn Noveck, Mercury News, 5 Feb. 2026

Verb

Somehow mothering four children, leading a massive pop resurgence, and still making time for a fun night with her girlfriends for a glass of wine (or seven). — Edward Segarra, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026 Key strands of the film are about mothering with laser focus on the parents played by Okonedo and Mallen. — Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 13 Feb. 2026 Really, the album is about tiring of mothering men who are great in bed but lack crucial social skills. — Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2025 And as the following selections from the archives of The Christian Science Publishing Society show, prayer can bring out more of how God is mothering, comforting, and preserving us right here and now. — The Christian Science Monitor, Christian Science Monitor, 8 May 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mothering

Noun

Brown has spoken publicly about her experience of motherhood and her adoption journey.

— Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 18 Sep. 2026
Dunham detailed her journey to motherhood, from the embryo transfer, which happened in November, and her relationship with her surrogate.

— Angeline Jane Bernabe, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of motherhood

Verb

Fans know these characters so well already that remaining text accurate while also having artistic license could be difficult.

— Jennifer Maas, Variety, 18 Sep. 2026
Constraints on the regional supply of natural gas leads to higher supply costs, which contribute to New England having higher electricity costs on average than the rest of the country.

— John Moritz, Hartford Courant, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of having

Verb

Mike, with his sharp features and small, dark hands, is probably at the Silver Spur right now, nursing his glass of vodka, two rocks, no twist.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
At the end, Bjornsson — who had been nursing a knee injury — retained his title, although not everyone made it through unscathed.

— Rob Tanner, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of nursing

Verb

Out of the more than 7,000 wine-producing châteaus in the region, 21 were highlighted by Michelin despite not earning a grape; then 38 received one, 16 were awarded two, and nine achieved the highest distinction of three.

— Mike DeSimone, Robb Report, 20 Sep. 2026
By contrast, the other oil-producing countries in the Persian Gulf are getting more oil through the Strait of Hormuz, despite Iran’s efforts to scare away shipping with drone and missile attacks.

— Jason Ma, Fortune, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of producing

Verb

Kris, Kourtney, Kim, Khloé, Kendall, and Kylie balance empire-building with something far more personal, from unexpected sparks and new relationships, to healing old wounds and embracing independence.

— Denise Petski, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2026
Unselfed love reverses the world’s sway that would turn us away from the always-available guiding, loving, and healing messages of the eternal Christ that lead us to do good deeds to benefit humanity, individually or collectively.

— The Christian Science Monitor, Christian Science Monitor, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of healing

Verb

Its central challenge may be delivering enormous electrical pulses inside a mobile combat vehicle.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 16 Sep. 2026
The result is a budget line that can rival media spend in scale while delivering far less accountability than any CFO would accept in any other part of the business.

— Jason Atkins, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2026