nurture

[ nur-cher ]
/ ˈnɜr tʃər /

verb (used with object), nur·tured, nur·tur·ing.

to feed and protect: to nurture one's offspring.
to support and encourage, as during the period of training or development; foster: to nurture promising musicians.
to bring up; train; educate.

noun

rearing, upbringing, training, education, or the like.
development: the nurture of young artists.
something that nourishes; nourishment; food.

Origin of nurture

1300–50; (noun) Middle English norture < Middle French, variant of nourriture < Late Latin nūtrītūra a nourishing, equivalent to Latin nūtrīt(us) (past participle of nūtrīre to feed, nourish) + -ūra -ure; (v.) derivative of the noun

SYNONYMS FOR nurture

1, 3 See nurse.

OTHER WORDS FROM nurture

Example sentences from the Web for nurturing

British Dictionary definitions for nurturing

nurture
/ (ˈnɜːtʃə) /

noun

the act or process of promoting the development, etc, of a child
something that nourishes
biology the environmental factors that partly determine the structure of an organism See also nature (def. 12)

verb (tr)

to feed or support
to educate or train

Derived forms of nurture

nurturable, adjective nurturer, noun

Word Origin for nurture

C14: from Old French norriture, from Latin nutrīre to nourish