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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Rebekka Card was nursing her 4-month-old son, Hayden, when the unthinkable happened.—
Meredith Wilshere,
People.com,
5 July 2025
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When plants fail to perform as expected, gardeners often reach for fertilizer or the watering hose, trying to nurse plants into production.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
5 July 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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Lupita Nyong'o stars as Roz, a service robot who washes up on a small island with no human inhabitants and must figure out how to adapt her programming to the wilderness while mothering a baby goose.—
K. Thor Jensen,
PC Magazine,
23 May 2025
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One of her reasons for leaving was to focus on mothering her two daughters.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
28 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wet-nurse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wet-nurse. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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