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
  • Nose tackle Bobby Brown returned to practice Monday after nursing a hamstring injury throughout the first week of camp.
    — Mike Kaye August 4, Charlotte Observer, 4 Aug. 2026
  • More scientifically referred to as retrograde duct flow, this is the mechanism by which breastfeeding babies shoot spit into the nipple of whomever is nursing them.
    — Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 29 July 2026
Definition of nursing
Verb
  • Ballot spoiling was the subject of a 2022 lawsuit brought by a Republican group.
    — Scott Bauer, Twin Cities, 29 July 2026
  • The Bandits put together a rally in the bottom of the seventh, spoiling Fouts’ shutout performance as Skylar Wallace laced an RBI single into left to bring home Keirstin Roose.
    — Molly Keshin, New York Times, 26 July 2026
Definition of spoiling
Verb
  • Bardstown Bourbon Company, which is well known for indulging its experimental impulses, decided to blend together bourbon and rye and finish it in pineapple rum barrels with pieces of pineapple added to the whiskey for good measure.
    — Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 2 Aug. 2026
  • On that note, resist the urge to bury discomfort by indulging, shopping or being stubbornly silent.
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 8 July 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 10 Aug. 2026.

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