1
as in to nurse
to give milk to from the breast
wet-nursed the woman's baby until she was well enough to do it herself
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2
as in to spoil
to treat with great or excessive care
recent college grads quickly learn that employers won't wet-nurse them the way that their teachers did
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Recent Examples of wet-nurse
With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse.
—
Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2024
In von Horn’s pic, set in post WW1 Copenhagen, the focal point is Karoline (Sonne), a young pregnant factory worker, who takes on the job of a wet-nurse for the charismatic Dagmar (Dyrholm) in order to escape poverty.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 19 May 2024
With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse, and a strong connection forms between the two women.
—Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 10 May 2024
In Von Horn’s pic, set in post WW1 Copenhagen, the focal point is Karoline (Sonne), a young pregnant factory worker, who takes on the job of a wet-nurse for the charismatic Dagmar (Dyrholm) in order to escape poverty.
—Annika Pham, Variety, 18 Jan. 2024
Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2024
In von Horn’s pic, set in post WW1 Copenhagen, the focal point is Karoline (Sonne), a young pregnant factory worker, who takes on the job of a wet-nurse for the charismatic Dagmar (Dyrholm) in order to escape poverty.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 19 May 2024
With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse, and a strong connection forms between the two women.
—Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 10 May 2024
In Von Horn’s pic, set in post WW1 Copenhagen, the focal point is Karoline (Sonne), a young pregnant factory worker, who takes on the job of a wet-nurse for the charismatic Dagmar (Dyrholm) in order to escape poverty.
—Annika Pham, Variety, 18 Jan. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wet-nurse
Verb
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Today’s retirement stewards nurse a Rube Goldberg contraption of laws, one-off integrations and workarounds.—
Miguel Kudry,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
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After starting Saturday sharing the lead, Ben Griffin and Matthias Schmid continued their control of the leaderboard at the Charles Schwab Challenge with the pair nursing a 4-stroke lead headed into Sunday’s final round.—
Lawrence Dow,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 May 2025
Verb
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Dodge won't spoil the surprise by confirming if the last one will be based on the Charger or the Challenger (or maybe both), but the evidence suggests the latter is more likely.—
Jack Fitzgerald,
Car and Driver,
13 Feb. 2023
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Farmers’ broiler chickens suffocate, and dairy products spoil.—
Monica Mark,
The Christian Science Monitor,
10 Feb. 2023
Verb
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The other two are named Romulus and Remus, after the mythical founders of Rome said to have been suckled by a she-wolf as infants.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Apr. 2025
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What are the neurons that make muscles ache and fatigue, or trigger migraines, or cause milk to flow in a mother’s breast when her baby suckles?—
Ariel Bleicher,
Quanta Magazine,
16 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Be babied by him with back rubs, head scratches and order fast food for dinner.—
Emily St. Martin,
Oc Register,
9 May 2025
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But Vance thinks the real problem is that people just aren’t babying hard enough.—
Rachel Marsden,
Hartford Courant,
8 May 2025
Verb
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One of her reasons for leaving was to focus on mothering her two daughters.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
28 May 2025
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Dana is really mothering to her fullest at the top of the hour.—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wet-nurse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wet-nurse. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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