Library / English Dictionary

NURSE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A woman who is the custodian of children

Synonyms:

nanny; nurse; nursemaid

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("nurse" is a kind of...):

keeper (someone in charge of other people)

adult female; woman (an adult female person (as opposed to a man))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "nurse"):

dry nurse (a nurse who cares for but does not suckle an infant)

mammy (an offensive term for a Black nursemaid in the southern U.S.)

amah; wet-nurse; wet nurse; wetnurse (a woman hired to suckle a child of someone else)

Derivation:

nurse (give suck to)

Sense 2

Meaning:

One skilled in caring for young children or the sick (usually under the supervision of a physician)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("nurse" is a kind of...):

caregiver; health care provider; health professional; PCP; primary care provider (a person who helps in identifying or preventing or treating illness or disability)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "nurse"):

visiting nurse (a nurse who is paid to visit the sick in their homes)

scrub nurse (a nurse who helps a surgeon prepare for surgery)

registered nurse; RN (a graduate nurse who has passed examinations for registration)

probationer; student nurse (a nurse in training who is undergoing a trial period)

accoucheuse; midwife (a woman skilled in aiding the delivery of babies)

matron (a woman in charge of nursing in a medical institution)

licensed practical nurse; LPN; practical nurse (a nurse who has enough training to be licensed by a state to provide routine care for the sick)

head nurse (the person in charge of nursing in a medical institution)

graduate nurse; trained nurse (someone who has completed the course of study (including hospital practice) at a nurses training school)

foster-nurse (a nurse who raises another woman's child as her own)

Instance hyponyms:

Cavell; Edith Cavell; Edith Louisa Cavell (English nurse who remained in Brussels after the German occupation in order to help Allied prisoners escape; was caught and executed by the Germans (1865-1915))

Florence Nightingale; Lady with the Lamp; Nightingale (English nurse remembered for her work during the Crimean War (1820-1910))

Margaret Higgins Sanger; Margaret Sanger; Sanger (United States nurse who campaigned for birth control and planned parenthood; she challenged Gregory Pincus to develop a birth control pill (1883-1966))

Holonyms ("nurse" is a member of...):

nurse-patient relation (the responsibility of a nurse to act in the best interests of the patient)

Derivation:

nurse (try to cure by special care of treatment, of an illness or injury)

nurse (serve as a nurse; care for sick or handicapped people)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Try to cure by special care of treatment, of an illness or injury

Example:

He nursed his cold with Chinese herbs

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "nurse" is one way to...):

care for; treat (provide treatment for)

Domain category:

medicine; practice of medicine (the learned profession that is mastered by graduate training in a medical school and that is devoted to preventing or alleviating or curing diseases and injuries)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

Did he nurse his foot?

Derivation:

nurse (one skilled in caring for young children or the sick (usually under the supervision of a physician))

nursing (the work of caring for the sick or injured or infirm)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Give suck to

Example:

You cannot nurse your baby in public in some places

Synonyms:

breastfeed; give suck; lactate; nurse; suck; suckle; wet-nurse

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Hypernyms (to "nurse" is one way to...):

feed; give (give food to)

Verb group:

suck (draw into the mouth by creating a practical vacuum in the mouth)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

nurse (a woman who is the custodian of children)

nursery (a child's room for a baby)

nursing (nourishing at the breast)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Maintain (a theory, thoughts, or feelings)

Example:

harbor a resentment

Synonyms:

entertain; harbor; harbour; hold; nurse

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Hypernyms (to "nurse" is one way to...):

experience; feel (undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 4

Meaning:

Treat carefully

Example:

He nursed the flowers in his garden and fertilized them regularly

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "nurse" is one way to...):

do by; handle; treat (interact in a certain way)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

nurser (a person who treats something carefully)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Serve as a nurse; care for sick or handicapped people

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "nurse" is one way to...):

care; give care (provide care for)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

nurse (one skilled in caring for young children or the sick (usually under the supervision of a physician))

nursing (the work of caring for the sick or injured or infirm)

nursing (the profession of a nurse)

Credits

 Context examples: 

The performance of these tasks involves direct work relationships with patients and participation as a member of the treatment or nursing care team in direct service to patients.

(Nursing Assistant, NCI Thesaurus)

A registered nurse (RN) with advanced training in diagnosing and treating illness.

(Nurse practitioner, NCI Thesaurus)

In cancer care, a nurse practitioner may manage the primary care of patients and their families, based on a practice agreement with a doctor.

(Nurse practitioner, NCI Dictionary)

And here, he added as a heavy step hurried along the passage, is someone who has a better right to nurse this lady than we have.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Professions that require the skills and experiences of nurses, but do not require actual patient contact on a regular basis.

(Non-Clinical Specialty Nurse, NCI Thesaurus)

Nursing care of the newborn infant.

(Neonatal Nursing, NCI Thesaurus)

A registered nurse who has worked at least 12 months out of the last 3 years as an oncology nurse.

(Advanced Oncology Certified Nurse, NCI Thesaurus)

Caregivers and nurses also expressed high levels of satisfaction with both methods of pain control during IV insertion.

(Better IV Insertion Device, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

You must know that last night was the very first night that I have ever slept without a nurse in the room.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A registered nurse who has additional education and training in how to diagnose and treat disease.

(Advanced practice nurse, NCI Dictionary)