nurse

1 to attend to the needs and comforts of willingly lent a hand to nurse his grandmother in her final years, helping her get from one room to the other and making sure she was warm Synonyms administer (to), care (for), minister (to), mother Related Words cure, heal, remedy; doctor, treat; aid, conserve, preserve, provide (for), support; baby, coddle, mollycoddle, pamper, spoil; cater (to), humor; indulge Phrases do for [chiefly British], look after, look out for, look to, see to, take care of, wait on (also wait upon) Near Antonyms brush (aside or off), forget, ignore, neglect, overlook, slight

2 to give milk to from the breast a new mother's decision to nurse her baby Synonyms breast-feed, suckle, wet-nurse Related Words bottle-feed Near Antonyms wean

3 to keep in one's mind or heart he continues to nurse a tender affection for his first girlfriend Synonyms bear, cherish, entertain, have, hold, harborRelated Words cultivate, foster, nurture, support, sustain; carry, keep, maintain, preserve, remember, retain, treasure; cleave (to), cling (to), hug, stick (to); brood (about or over), fixate (on or upon), obsess (about or over)Near Antonyms disregard, drop, forget, ignore, neglect, overlook; abjure, decline, deny, disdain, refuse, reject, repudiate, scorn; abandon, desert, discard, forsake, give up, part (with), quit, renounce, throw out; erase, expunge

4 to treat with great or excessive care nursed his sprained ankle for the rest of the week Synonyms cocker, coddle, cosset, dandle, indulge, mollycoddle, baby, pamper, spoil, wet-nurseRelated Words cater (to), humor; content, delight, gladden, gratify, mother, oblige, please, satisfy; appease, mollify, pacify, placate, sootheNear Antonyms control, discipline, restrain; oppress; neglect, overlook, slight; molest, outrage, violate; harass, harm, hurt, injure, oppress, persecute, torment, torture, victimizeAntonyms abuse, ill-treat, ill-use, maltreat, manhandle, mishandle, mistreat, misuse

5 to bring to maturity through care and education as foster parents they accepted and nursed 16 needy children over the years Synonyms breed, foster, nourish, bring up, raise, rearRelated Words father, mother; attend, care (for), cradle, cultivate, mind, minister (to), nurture, watch; discipline, educate, instruct, mentor, school, teach, train, tutor; edify, enlighten, indoctrinate; feed, provide (for), supply; advance, forward, further, promote; prepare; direct, guide, lead, shepherd, showNear Antonyms abuse, ill-treat, ill-use, maltreat, mishandle, mistreat; ignore, neglect; harm, hurt, injure

6 to help the growth or development of her teachers did much to nurse her literary talent Synonyms advance, cultivate, encourage, forward, further, incubate, nourish, foster, nurture, promoteRelated Words advocate, back, champion, endorse (also indorse), support, uphold; endow, finance, fund, patronize, stake, subsidize, underwrite; abet, aid, assist; advertise, boost, plug, publicize, tout; agitate (for), campaign (for), work (for)Near Antonyms ban, bar, enjoin, forbid, interdict, outlaw, prevent, prohibit, proscribe; battle, combat, contend (with), counter, fight, oppose; repress, snuff (out), squash, squelch, stifle, subdue, suppress; arrest, check, halt, retard; encumber, fetter, hobble, impede, interfere (with), manacle, obstruct, shackleAntonyms discourage, frustrate, hinder, inhibit

7 to use or give out in stingy amounts he carefully nursed his energy during the marathon so that he would have something left for the final stretch Synonyms spare, scant, skimp (on), stint (on)Related Words dole out, mete (out), portion (out), ration (out); pinch, shortchange; conserve, preserveNear Antonyms heap, lavish, pour, rain, shower