wet-nursing

verb

present participle of wet-nurse
1
as in nursing
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in spoiling
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wet-nursing
  1. nursing
  2. spoiling
  3. indulging
Verb
  • Cowboys defensive tackle Quinnen Williams was on the field for just two plays after nursing something in the blue medical tent earlier.
    — Jim Barnes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Khadijah had insisted on nursing their newborn Aziza with her own breast milk, but Latif discovers that only a few pouches remain in the fridge and formula makes his baby sick.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of nursing
Verb
  • Digger is, first and foremost, a parable—without spoiling the plot, its events are intentionally exaggerated to make a point about humans and climate change.
    — Emma Gometz, Scientific American, 2 Oct. 2026
  • India passed legislation curtailing online wagers last year, spoiling the value of gaming powerhouse Junglee after Flutter had paid $237 million to acquire 95% of the company looking to gain a foothold in the world’s most populated country.
    — Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of spoiling
Verb
  • After the event was disrupted by an armed intruder, the Administration and the association scheduled a July do-over, where Trump delivered a rambling speech indulging seemingly every tangent that sprang to mind, but his contempt remained apparent.
    — Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 27 Sep. 2026
  • And of course there’s a bookstore in town for indulging your inner Rory.
    — Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of indulging
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.

Browse Nearby Words

wet-nurses
wet-nursing
wets
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Cite this Entry

“Wet-nursing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wet-nursing. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

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