| 释义 |
nursen.1 Origin: A variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: nourice n. Etymology: Variant (with loss of the vowel in the second syllable) of nourice n. Compare nursh n.The δ. forms, attested from the 17th cent. onwards, show the early assimilatory loss of r before s (see E. J. Dobson Eng. Pronunc. 1500–1700 (ed. 2, 1968) II. §401 (c)). In the mid 19th cent. the English word was borrowed into French in sense 1a. I. A person who or thing which nurtures or cares for others. 1. society > education > upbringing > [noun] > one who brings up > nurse the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > [noun] > feeding > feeding offspring > suckling infant > wet nurse α. a1325 St. Kenelm (Corpus Cambr.) 135 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill (1956) 283 His norse þat him hadde yued & wiþ hure milk forþ ibroȝt Tendrost was of þis child. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden (St. John's Cambr.) (1876) VI. 401 Þanne þe norse [v.r. nors] brouȝt forþ þe childe. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add.) f. 70 A norse hath þe name of norischinge for sche is I-ordeyned to Norische and to fede þe childe. tr. Palladius (Duke Humfrey) (1896) i. 658 But xxx daies olde, They [sc. peafowl] with their norce into the feld be tolde. a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich (1904) I. l. 7327 Antron..tolde Arthewr of al his lyve, And How His Norse that His Wyf Was. 1470 in J. T. Gilbert (1889) I. 340 It is ordained that noo Irisshe hostler, Irisshe nors..ne Irisshe paramour bi moo maner..within the citte. 1529 T. More Dialogue Heresyes i, in 124/2 For possible it wer that..a riche mannes norce bringe home her owne chylde for her maisters. c1540 (?a1400) 8484 Two sonnes..were bothe at the brest of the bright norse. 1551 Gen. xxiv. 59 So they let Rebecca their syster go with her norse. the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > promotion or help forward > [noun] > one who or that which a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add.) f. 179 In þis prouynce is þe cuntre Atticam; þer Inne was þat noble cite Athene..norse of philesophers. c1450 (1900) 149 (MED) Þe iij braunche is losengerye, & þei þat hauntyn it arn þe deuelys norsys, for þei norsche men to lyg longe in here synne. 1526 W. Bonde iii. sig. CCiiii Obedience..is the helthe of faithfull soules, the nourse of all vertue. 1559 J. Knox (1864) VI. 14 Mother to all mischeefe and nourse most favourable to superstition. 1578 J. Lyly f. 34v Why diddest thou leaue Athens the nourse of wisdome, to inhabite Naples the nourisher of wantonnesse? a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) iii. i. 242 Time is the Nurse, and breeder of all good. View more context for this quotation 1642 J. Gauden 66 Truth and justice the mother and nurse of Peace. 1659 J. Tatham 6 Idleness, the Nurse of Ignorance; Which lulls mens braines, in a Lethergean Trance. 1728 A. Pope iii. 82 The North..Great nurse of Goths, of Alans, and of Huns. 1764 O. Goldsmith 19 That land of scholars, and that nurse of arms. 1787 A. Yearsley 152 Silence, mute blessing,..Soft nurse of dear Idea, near me stay. 1817 P. B. Shelley ix. xiii. 199 Fear, The nurse of Vengeance, bade him wait the event. 1873 H. B. Tristram xvi. 300 Gently sloping valleys, the mothers and nurses of the ravines which plough the bowels of the rocks. 1911 ‘M. Field’ Messiah ii. i, in 184 Ah, Rabbi—that book of destruction, that nurse of falsehood, your Kabbala—would you had never unrolled it! the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > [noun] > nourishing agent a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add.) f. 2406 Þilke þat took ferst feedynge and norisshynge is by crafte y-torned and y-chaunged in to kynde of a roote & vseth þe office of a roote; and þe office of the nurseys [L. nutricis officio] chaungeth, ffor þe spray þat furst took fedyng of þe roote is newe chaunged and bycom a roote and norissheþ and feedeþ al þe spray þat springeþ þerof as þe moder norissheþ þe doughtres. tr. Palladius (Duke Humfrey) (1896) iv. 35 Mold anoon on euery side hit hepith. This roote & molde as nors & moder kepeth. 1650 W. Charleton tr. J. B. van Helmont (new ed.) 114 But red French Wines, unlesse nourisht by their Lees, (which for this effect, Vintners call, the Mother, or Nurse of Claret) dissolve their owne Tincture. the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > advice > [noun] > adviser or counsellor the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > care, protection, or charge > [noun] > one who looks after ?a1425 tr. Catherine of Siena (Harl.) (1966) 52 (MED) He was to ȝou also a verry and a trewe nurse, which suffride a ful bittir medicyn as galle. a1450 (1969) l. 860 What..art þou þe wers Þow þou brekyste Goddys heste? Do aftyr me, I am þi nors. 1566 J. Studley tr. Seneca iii. f. 28 O fayth full nourse and mate. Of all my heauye hart breakyng, and dyuers cursed fate. 1580 T. Churchyard 4 An aide to straungers still, that staide within her gates: As noble a Nourse to neighbours all, as freendly to estates. 1600 Abp. G. Abbot i. 3 That woman, who was..a nurce to that reuerend man Elias, in the time of bitter famine. 1812 6 He ‘ridiculed the idea of such a man..being sent on an expedition with a nurse to superintend him’. 1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher 502 Nurse, an able first lieutenant, who in former times had charge of a young boy-captain of interest, but possessing no knowledge for command. 2. the world > people > person > baby or infant > [adverb] > suckling 1570 J. Foxe (rev. ed.) II. 930/2 This Richard Hune had a child at nourse in Midlesex. 1608 sig. Dv I repent now, that ones left vnkild, My brat at nurse. ?c1663 B. Whitelocke (1990) 71 His wife stayed att Fawley Court the more contentedly being neer her childe att Nurse att Woburne. 1677 i. i. 6 'Tis well known I have three chopping Bastards at Nurse. 1690–1700 sig. Fv Whether the same Childe be..in the House, or at Nurse. 1711 No. 4929/4 An Infant then at Nurse. 1752 H. Fielding I. iii. xi. 264 Her Child..was at Nurse at a distant Part of the Town. 1796 I. 66 A new born son, who was said to have also died at nurse. 1866 W. Collins II. iii. xv. 110 A woman who took in children at nurse. 1894 G. Moore xxxii. 258 Dulwich..—that's where Jackie was at nurse. a1963 L. MacNeice (1979) 320 As one feels worse When a tree is cut down,..a child at nurse Weaned. society > education > upbringing > [verb (transitive)] > commit to the care of a nurse society > law > transfer of property > settlement of property > settle (property) [verb (transitive)] > put property in trust the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > care, protection, or charge > care for, protect, or have charge of [verb (transitive)] > commit to care or custody of another > specifically a person > a child 1580 J. Lyly (new ed.) To Rdrs. sig. Bi Sending me into the countrey to nurse, where I tyred at a drye breast three yeares, and was at the last enforced to weane my selfe.] 1593 T. Nashe f. 72v At thy breasts (as at Cleopatras) Aspisses shall be put out to nurse. a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) iv. ii. 140 The elder of them being put to nurse, Was..stolne away. View more context for this quotation a1658 J. Cleveland (1687) 18 Can Wedlock know so great a Curse, As putting Husbands out To nurse? 1671 J. Sharp vi. iv. 353 The usual way for rich people is to put forth their children to nurse. 1722 D. Defoe 9 It was my good hap to be put to Nurse..to a Woman who was indeed Poor. 1755 No. 51. ⁋3 He was determined, that the babe..should be put out to nurse,—he hated the squall of children. 1791 J. Boswell anno 1776 II. 42 [Johnson:] There is nothing against which an old man should be so much upon his guard as putting himself to nurse. 1836 C. Dickens (1837) xxii. 224 I should wery much like to see your mother-in-law born again. Wouldn't I put her out to nurse! 1847 C. Brontë II. vi. 164 He would send for the baby; though I entreated him rather to put it out to nurse and pay for its maintenance. 1866 C. Kingsley I. xiv. 267 I put my love out to nurse, instead of weaning it. a1916 C. Gouldsbury (1932) 88 This is the land where, in disgust, We put ambition out to nurse. a1972 C. Day Lewis (1992) 81 What Protagoras missed, Needs be reborn hermaphrodite And put himself out to nurse With a syren and a sybil. 1729 C. Johnson i. iii. 21 I have a small Pittance,..industriously collected by taking Land to Nurse, and casting up other People's Accounts. 1759 S. Fielding II. iii. x. 107 This he called taking an Estate to nurse. 1771 T. Smollett I. 115 He has been obliged to..put his estate to nurse. 1800 E. Hervey III. 134 His estate of 1200l. a year went to nurse; and a small allowance from his creditors..remained for the maintenance of his family. 1824 Hist. Gaming Houses 10 in In trust for H.R.H., as the lawyers have it, but which the fashionable world call ‘being at nurse’. 1875 J. Grant viii. 65 His father..died in time to let the estates go to nurse during the present man's minority. the world > health and disease > healing > healer > nurse > [noun] a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) v. i. 99 I will attend my husband, be his nurse, Diet his sicknesse, for it is my Office. View more context for this quotation 1621 M. Wroth iv. 474 A Feauer tooke me, what kindnes did she then expresse?..tending me her selfe, and being so louing a Nurse to me, as I recouered within short time. 1662 Duchess of Newcastle Matrimonial Trouble i. i. ii, in 425 That he might do [sc. marry], if it were for no other reason, but for a Nurse to tend him, if he should chance to be sick. 1726 J. Barker 105 She put her into a warm Bed, got a Nurse to rub and chafe, and a Surgeon to bleed her, and use all other Applications suitable to her Condition. 1766 J. Entick Surv. London in IV. 382 19 sisters, 19 nurses. 1785 W. Cowper i. 89 The nurse sleeps sweetly, hired to watch the sick. 1809 21 183 He returned the vessel to the nurse, after he had swallowed some of the fluid. 1843 E. S. Abdy tr. R. von Falkenstein (ed. 2) 178 A young man, delirious in the small pox, when his nurse was asleep, jumped out of bed. 1876 J. S. Bristowe i. i. 230 Nurses and medical attendants rarely,..take the disease from patients under their charge. 1918 3 Aug. 38/1 An army school of nurses has been established under the direction of the Army Medical Department. 1970 M. Angelou xiii. 85 Then came the last visit from the visiting nurse, and the doctor said I was healed. 1990 22 Feb. 547/1 The image of nurses as handmaidens is giving way to that of specialty-trained and certified advanced practitioners, with independent duties and responsibilities to their patients. the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by habit > tree or woody plant > cultivated or valued > [noun] > shade- or shelter-tree 1788 6 10 I only consider them [sc. Scotch firs] as nurses to my other trees. 1827 H. Steuart (1828) 224 These had been introduced merely as nurses to the deciduous Trees. 1833 H. Martineau (ed. 3) v. 62 Half the larches are to remain for timber trees; the other half are nurses, and will be thinned out. 1966 21 Apr. 16/6 Scots pines were commonly planted as nurses to oak. 1973 6 Dec. 1928/1 Larch has been..used..as a nurse with hardwoods and alone. 1987 K. Rushforth (1990) 161/2 Because of its relatively slow growth rate, it can also be used as a nurse for trees which require shelter. 5. the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > [noun] > member of > defined as social insect or association of > worker the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > worker 1818 W. Kirby & W. Spence (ed. 2) II. xxvii. 500 The workers, termed by Huber nourrices, or petites abeilles (nurses), upon whom..the principal labours of the hive devolve. 1835 IV. 155/2 The large-sized workers..make cells of a larger diameter than those made by the nurses. 1860 I. 801/2 It is supposed by many naturalists, that some of the working-bees are exclusively wax-workers, some nurses, &c. 1919 W. Osler ii. 13 The nursing function..is really trophallactic... The larva is provided with..an ambrosia greedily lapped up by the nurse. 1934 Oct. 293/2 These [workers] were still further diversified in many species of ants as soldiers or defenders, and workers proper, or nurses and nest-builders. 1995 70 19 The transition from nurses (hive bees) to foragers (field bees) is associated with sharp increases of mortality during the onset of foraging. the world > animals > animal body > general parts > sexual organs and reproduction > [noun] > generation of animals > animal in asexual stage the world > life > biology > biological processes > procreation or reproduction > types of reproduction > [noun] > alternate generation > individual undergoing 1845 G. Busk tr. J. J. S. Steenstrup 24 I shall..designate them by the short name of Ammen (altrices, nurses or foster-parents). 1845 G. Busk tr. J. J. S. Steenstrup 24 All of which become..polypiform ‘nurses’, which nourish the Medusæ-larvæ from their bodies. 1855 T. R. Jones (ed. 2) vi. §408. 145 The stomach, for instance, in the full-grown ‘parent-nurses’, is longer and wider than in any, even of the youngest ‘nurses’. 1888 G. Rolleston & W. H. Jackson (ed. 2) 446 The ovum in both Salpa and Doliolum produces the nurse. 1903 18 Sept. 365/2 But a single species of Doliolum was taken, and that represented only by the ‘nurse’. 1878 P. Manson in 14 304 (heading) On the development of Filaria sanguinis hominis, and on the mosquito considered as a nurse. 1922 XXXI. 896/1 Such arthropoda..being specific ‘nurses’ or intermediatory hosts of the parasite actually causing the disease, are known as ‘carriers’ or ‘vectors’. 1934 17 Aug. 156/2 He [sc. Patrick Manson] discovered by laborious experiment that the intermediation of the mosquito acted as a nurse in propagating the disease of man—the filaria worm. the world > food and drink > drink > manufacture of alcoholic drink > brewing > [noun] > brewers' utensils 1880 ii. 407 The somewhat clumsy expedient of immersing in the wort casks filled with hot or cold water was employed for the purpose of accelerating or retarding the fermentation. The casks so used were termed ‘nurses’, and are still used in some breweries. II. As a title or preceding a name (in senses 1a and 3). the world > health and disease > healing > healer > nurse > [noun] > mode of address to nurse a1556 N. Udall (?1566) i. iii. sig. B.ijv Nourse medle you with your spyndle and your whirle. 1568 iv. iv. sig. E.ijv I pray you nourse looke about And see well to the fyre that it go not out. 1597 W. Shakespeare i. iii. 10 Nurce come back again I haue remembred me, thou'se heare our counsaile. 1631 T. Drue iii. sig. E4v You are a Mirror, Nurse, so art thou. 1695 W. Congreve ii. i. 18 Nurse, Where's your young Mistress? 1787 ‘Polly Pindar’ i. 15 And as for you, Nurse, why here's—Half-a-crown. 1835 W. Wordsworth Russ. Fugitive i. vii, in 125 O beloved Nurse,..My thanks with silent tears Have unto Heaven and You been paid. 1843 C. Dickens (1844) xxv.313 The doctor came too... ‘What sort of a night, nurse?’ 1865 ‘L. Carroll’ iv. 43 Coming in a minute, nurse! 1915 V. Woolf xxv. 419 ‘Now, Nurse,’ he whispered, ‘please tell me your opinion. Do you consider that she is very seriously ill?’ 1940 A. Christie i. i. 21 Do you think she's really good-looking, Nurse? 1993 Q. Wilder (BNC) ‘Nurse!’ he bellowed. She came scurrying, a good roar doing what his call-light had not. the world > health and disease > healing > healer > nurse > [noun] > in charge of specific patient a1556 N. Udall (?1566) i. iii. sig. B.iiij Nourse is not so nice. 1573 G. Gascoigne tr. Ariosto Supposes i. i, in 2 Pitie nor pencion, peny nor pater noster shoulde euer haue made Nurse once to open hir mouth in the cause. 1672 J. Lacy iii. i. 40 Alack poor Nurse, she does use to have fits. 1695 W. Congreve ii. i. 30 I'm resolv'd I won't let Nurse put any more Lavender among my Smocks. 1700 E. Ward II. v. 9 Down comes Nurse to desire us to walk up. 1765 H. Brooke (Dublin ed.) I. v. 164 Nurse went up Stairs, with a most bountiful Cut, of Home-baked Bread and Butter. 1787 ‘Polly Pindar’ i. 15 ‘What's the matter?’—‘The matter, Sir!’ cry'd Nurse—‘Why all this clatter!’ 1819 M. Wilmot 21 Dec. (1935) 48 As for Nurse, she is indeed a treasure, she saves us mints in all household matters. 1870 J. H. Ewing (1896) 79b Nurse must sit up..fine-darning great..holes in Amelia's muslin dresses. 1910 H. James Let. 23 Jan. in H. James & E. Wharton (1990) iii. 142 I am continuously in bed, prostrate & already mending, with Nurse only mercifully triumphant. 1937 J. Betjeman 25 Nurse looked at the silent bedstead. 1992 (BNC) May 542 A doctor can tell a client: ‘Nurse will see you right away.’ the world > health and disease > healing > healer > nurse > [noun] > qualified 1589 J. Anger sig. B1v Such phrensie oft doth hant the wise (Nurse Wisedom once reiected). a1637 B. Jonson (1640) ii. iv. 30 Old Nurse Mortgage, Shee snoar'd i'the Chaire. 1662 Duchess of Newcastle Lady Contemplation ii. ii. ix, in 218 (stage direct.) Enter Nurse Careful, as in a fright, unto the Lady Ward. 1702 J. Mordaunt Let. in E. Hamilton (1965) ii. 33 I did not doubt but that you would have great trouble in parting wth Nurse Lucas. 1791 F. Burney 12 Sept. (1972) I. 65 Less than an hour compleated the whole business without any help excepting Nurse Whittons. 1827 W. Scott Surgeon's Daughter in 1st Ser. II. ii. 73 I thought she seemed to gie a scunner at the eggs and bacon that Nurse Simson spoke about to her. 1874 F. C. Burnand i. 3 Nurse Davis, the kindest soul in the world, and very fond of my mother. 1885 C. M. Yonge II. xviii. 207 Mrs. Egremont obtained from poor Nurse Poole all the details. 1926 21 Oct. 4/2 Nurse Dainton tends me like I was made of glass. 1975 P. D. James iv. 100 They made the bed together, Nurse Rainer flicking the sheets into place and neatly mitring each corner. Compounds C1. General attributive and appositive. society > education > upbringing > [noun] > one who brings up > nurse the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > [noun] > feeding > feeding offspring > suckling infant > wet nurse 1596 T. Nashe Ep. Ded. sig. C2 To rush in bluntly with thy washing bowle and thy nurse-cloutes vnder thy cloake. 1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden i. 382 Sir Thomas Bodley..a most worthy Nource-sonne of this Vniuersity. 1655 I. Walton (ed. 2) xx. 339 If you put them..into a nurse-pond, or feeding pond,..then no care is to be taken, whether there be most Male or Female Carps. 1690–1700 sig. Fv You shall kepe a Booke of all the Nurses which keep any of the said Children..and the same shall yow call the Nurse-Booke; thereby to shew how many children every Nurse hath. 1792 E. P. Simcoe 11 June (1911) viii. 92 Collins the nurse girl's slow manner, characteristic of the Western States, diverted us. 1802 S. J. Pratt iii. 77 As right the fondness as the language wrong, And all the nurse-taught eloquence so shrill. 1847 C. Brontë III. iii. 98 I will be a servant, a nurse-girl, if I can be no better. 1896 Apr. 480 To make himself personally acquainted with the nurse~land of the poet. 1953 D. Lessing i. 16 There was a little black nurse-girl seated on one of the logs, under a big tree, with a white child in her arms. 1999 17 July i. 9/3 The nurse-run telephone advice service, NHS Direct. 1818 W. Kirby & W. Spence (ed. 3) I. xv. 493 The nurse-bees..do secrete wax, but in very small quantities. 1834 II. 60/1 A sort of barren females,..variously termed neuters, workers, or nurse-ants. 1960 D. C. Braungart & R. Buddeke (ed. 5) xii. 190 All larvae..are fed on the same kind of food the first three days. This is a rich, predigested food supplied by the nurse bees and called ‘royal jelly’. 1995 145 844 In [the ant] Lasius flavus, the mite Antennophorus grandis has been shown to occur preferentially on the smaller nurse workers. 1845 G. Busk tr. J. J. S. Steenstrup 89 (note) A confounding of ‘nurse’-germs and Cercaria-germs may occur very readily. 1876 (Royal Soc.) 166 117 In the nurse-stocks of several species of Fungia a kind of intracalicinal gemmation appears to take place... It is owing to this mode of growth that the stems of the nurse-stock become jointed. 1888 G. Rolleston & W. H. Jackson (ed. 2) 445 Sexual organs are absent, or at least atrophied, in the nurse forms of Salpa and Doliolum. 1987 M. S. Laverack & J. Dando (ed. 3) xxxii. 186/2 Doliolids have a more extreme cycle in which a sexually-produced larval stage develops into a nurse oozooid that buds to give strings of daughter zooids that remain attached. 1994 69 169/1 Oozooid: acts as a nurse zooid for a generation of blastozooids, loses feeding capability. C2. Appositive, designating a person who acts both as a nurse and in some additional capacity. a. Such a person who works for a private employer or client. 1897 M. Scott-Moncrieff in 583/1 The wading nun returned to the care of the little old lady whose nurse-companion she seemed to be. 1908 B. Harraden 210 Dr. Edgar can no doubt find you a nurse-companion. 1973 A. Christie iii. ii. 132 She was a kind of nurse-companion with Mrs. Beddingfield. 1877 Jan. 138 He performed the offices of physician, nurse secretary, equerry, major-domo, ami intime, and tutor, to the young author of the ‘Characteristics’. 1950 T. S. Eliot ii. 91 The Nurse-Secretary enters, with Appointment Book. b. Chiefly North American. As a title in the medical profession, indicating an additional qualification or formal responsibility. 1938 33 501 Undesirable practices such as ‘the solicitation of patients, the entrenchment of nurse anesthetist, [etc.]’. 1985 C. S. Ward (ed. 2) xxiv. 350/2 It is not within the scope of this book to discuss the desirability of employing nurse-anaesthetists. 1971 3 58/2 The use of paramedical personnel, such as nurse-midwives, nurse-clinicians and physician-assistants, for more routine medical procedures. 2002 (Nexis) 1 Jan. 15 Nurse clinicians or physician's assistants, perform the majority (73%) of initial contraceptive exams. 1933 27 Jan. 106/1 For the..rural areas..smaller ‘medical stations’ should be established with one or two physicians, a dentist, a trained nurse-midwife and other public health nurses. 1949 41 278/2 To study the educational preparation of nurse midwives. 1993 23 May e3/1 A distinction was made between certified nurse midwives..and direct-entry (lay) midwives who attend home births. 1949 41 278/1 In 1933 the Maternity Center Association established a school of nurse midwifery in New York. 1995 L. Garrett (new ed.) v. 102 Patients were treated by the staff of four Belgian nuns who had received a modicum of training in nurse-midwifery. 1994 27 Sept. 18/7 Types of medicines or appliances a nurse prescriber may sign for... Drugs for threadworms. 2001 (Nexis) 13 Oct. 6 Nurse prescribers are being trained by pharmacists to prescribe products that have traditionally been counter prescribed by community pharmacists. C3. the world > life > biology > substance > cell > types of cells > [noun] > other types of cells 1896 E. B. Wilson iii. 114 In all these cases it is doubtful whether the nurse-cells are sister-cells of the egg which have sacrificed their own development for the sake of their companions, or whether they have had a distinct origin from a very early period. 1964 C. W. Bishop & D. M. Surgenor viii. 324 Electron micrographs..depict erythroblastic islands in the bone marrow, in which a central reticulum cell (nurse cell) is surrounded by a ring of erythroblasts. 1984 L. W. Browder (ed. 2) vii. 301 In Drosophila (which has nurse cells) oogenesis takes only about eight days. the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric made from specific material > cotton > [noun] > for specific uses 1907 1407 Cotton dresses, in good quality Nurse Cloth. 1932 D. C. Minter 248/2 Book Carrier... Blue nurse cloth, hessian or heavy Russian crash. the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > cultivation of plants or crops > crop or crops > [noun] > other crops 1907 30 Aug. 274/2 In series I. the clover was sown without any nurse crop, one cutting made and removed. 1955 117 249 Even in hardwood country they [sc. conifers] are often required as nurse-crops to the deciduous trees. 1988 61 339 Significant butt rot had also developed on a 33-year-old stand of Norway spruce..11 years after a Scots pine nurse crop was removed. 1890 Nurse-frog. a1933 J. A. Thomson (1934) I. xviii. 475 Nearer home is the nurse-frog (Alytes obstetricans), not uncommon in some parts of the Continent. 1989 59 208/2 Tadpoles are transported to water-filled axils of bromeliads by female nurse frogs. 1972 L. Hancock iii. 42 Imagine clambering over rotting nurse logs, the fallen rotting trunks from which the new young seedlings grew. 1990 Sept. 15/1 Nurse logs—the gigantic stumps of long-dead conifers—fed the roots of living trees. the mind > language > naming > name or appellation > [noun] > nickname or additional name 1605 W. Camden i. 114 From Nicknames or Nursenames, came these..Bill for William, Clem for Clement. 1890 A. W. Moore i. 124 Nicknames..are very common. Many of these are nurse or pet-names. the world > health and disease > healing > healer > nurse > [noun] > other types 1967 May 758 (title) A program to increase health care for children: The Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program. 1985 17 116/3 The committee argues that greater reliance be placed on nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners, particularly for hard-to-reach, high-risk women. 1995 22 Mar. 41/3 Many people have asked whether nurse practitioners will become a consistent feature of primary care or whether they will be merely a flash in the pan of acute bed crises. 1917 17 335 The nursing personnel of our Base Hospital units..will consist of 50 nurses, 25 nurses' aids, 15 reserve nurses and 25 reserve nurses' aids in each unit. 1942 Jan. 33 (title) Training program announced for 100,000 nurse's aides. 1995 23 Oct. a7 She has a homemaker, Yvonne, a nurse's aide... Yvonne also updates the order on Nord's condition. 1873 Oct. 456 The lady superintendent and a few probationers spent the first year in a hired house; on the 1st of May, 1862, the Nurses' Home was ready for them. 1906 S. A. Tooley vii. 85 In 1860..the St. John's sisterhood arranged a comfortable nurses' home, the first to be attached to a London hospital. 1988 B. Cashman 74 He had noticed that the new extension to the nurses' home could not be used until the furniture had been installed. 1956 23 56/2 Joking as well as swearing, laughing as well as grumbling could be heard at the surgical nurses' station. 1972 1 Sept. 23/1 Post-operative surgical patients..were regularly put in beds as close as possible to the nurses' station. 1994 16 Jan. 20/1 A doctor enters an order, and a $425,000 robot picks the drug and dosage, packages the order, barcodes it and ships it to the nurses' station. Derivatives 1894 Jan. 66/1 I knew him from the time his birth..shook the nurseless and physicianless frontier community in Jack County. 1912 E. A. Parry ii. 14 I well remember how we envied the nurseless urchins in their freedom of the real park across the water. 1987 R. G. Thomas (BNC) After some wandering among nurseless cradles I recognized him by some unsuspected instinct—a pallid moustached old baby. 1594 T. Kyd ii What e're the massie Earth..on her nurse-like backe sustaines, Vpon the will of Heauen doth waite. a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) v. vi. 88 Neuer Master had A Page..So feate, so Nurse-like . View more context for this quotation 1799 W. Godwin I. x. 292 He had been fitted for many nurse-like offices by the unwearied attention he had exerted towards me in the paroxysm of my insanity. 1991 M. Atwood 61 One more session of sticky near-sex with Mary Jo, with her damp kisses and her nurselike manipulations of his body..would leave him with a permanent limp. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022). nursen.2 Origin: Perhaps a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: huss n. Etymology: Perhaps originally a variant of huss n. with metanalysis (see N n.); subsequently re-formed after nurse n.1 the world > animals > fish > subclass Elasmobranchii > order Pleurotremata > [noun] > family Orectolobidae > member of (carpet shark) the world > animals > fish > subclass Elasmobranchii > order Pleurotremata > [noun] > family Scyliorhinidae > member of genus Scyliorhinus (rock-fish) > scyliorhinus stellaris 1499 (Pynson) sig. livv/1 Nusse, fisshe. a1584 S. Borough in R. Hakluyt (1589) ii. 321 There we gate a great Nuse, which Nuses were there [i.e. near Nova Zembla] so plentie, that they would scarcely suffer any other fish to come neere the hookes. 1599 T. Nashe sig. Hiv The whale, the sea horse, the Norse, the wasserman, the Dolphin. 1699 W. Dampier ii. i. 25 The Fish near the Island are Sharks, Sword Fishes and Nurses... The Nurse is just like a Shark, only its skin is rougher. 1711 C. Lockyer 279 Small parcels of sherk's fins, nurses skins and tariands very reasonable. a1757 P. H. Bruce (1782) 424 They make plenty of oil from the nurses,..and a beneficial whale fishery might be established here. 1851 P. H. Gosse 243 The Nurse is of a dull brown hue on the upper parts, without spots. 1951 18 Apr. 14/2 It's not a dog-shark; it's a young grey-nurse and they're man-eaters. 1983 G. Lord vi. 44 They wandered into the aquarium... Through the surrounding thick glass walls, the blunt head of a seven-foot grey nurse nosed only inches from where the two were standing. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022). nursev. Origin: Probably a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymons: nursh v.; nourish v. Etymology: Probably partly an alteration of nursh v., with change of ending after nurse n.1, and partly a variant of nourish v. with loss of the vowel in the second syllable (compare forms at that entry).With the Middle English forms in nor- compare also forms at nourice n., nurse n.1 I. Senses relating to nurture and care. 1. transitive. Chiefly poetic (now rare). society > education > upbringing > [verb (intransitive)] c1330 (?c1300) Reinbrun (Auch.) in J. Zupitza (1891) 635 Y mote him in me chaumber norsy..Norture y schel him lere. 1526 Luke iv. f. lxxix He cam to nazareth where he was noursed. 1566 W. Painter I. Ded. sig. *iiijv A man..rather fostred in the bosome of Bellona her selfe, than nourced in kentish soyle. 1590 ‘Pasquil’ sig. C Manie excellent learned wits, and religious mindes are nursed there. 1638 J. Milton Lycidas in Obsequies 21 in For we were nurst upon the self-same hill, Fed the same flock. 1682 E. Settle ii. i. 16 Nurs'd in a Palace, and a King my Parent, And yet thus wretched! 1717 C. Johnson iv. vi. 43 Slaves and beardless Eunuchs, Bred in enervate Luxury and Sloth, Nurs'd in the sleepy Shade of this Seraglio. 1751 E. Darwin 27 Nurs'd in his [sc. the cedar's] shade the infant Scyons grow. a1770 T. Chatterton (1971) I. 441 Nurs'd in a furnace, Nox and Neptune's child. 1820 P. B. Shelley iii. iii. 107 Like sister-antelopes..Nursed among lilies near a brimming stream. 1896 W. S. Gilbert 5 Born with a natural taste for crime—nursed in a stolen cradle. 1977 H. Fast 11 He was nursed in railroad camps while his father drove spikes and handled steel rails. 1567 W. Painter II. xxiv. f. 209 So that shame separate from before the eyes of youth, riper age noursed in impudency, their sight is so daseled, as they can see nothing that either shame or feare can make them blush. 1590 E. Spenser iii. v. sig. Gg5 Shee of herbes had great intendiment, Taught of the Nymphe, which from her infancy Her nourced had in trew Nobility. 1602 B. Jonson v. i. sig. K True borne, and nurst with all the Sciences. View more context for this quotation 1637 J. Milton 2 His faire off-spring nurs't in Princely lore Are comming to attend their Fathers state. 1664 T. Killigrew 1st Pt. Cicilia & Clorinda i. i, in 220 A gallant and a knowing Souldier,..having still been bred in Camps, and nurs'd in war. 1744 J. Miller & J. Hoadly iii. i. 35 Dost thou think His youthful Courage, nurs'd in Superstition, Can e'er be work'd. 1794 R. B. Sheridan (new ed.) iii. 62 There is a chilling air around poverty, that often kills affection, that was not nurs'd in it. 1799 S. T. Coleridge Ode to Georgiana in 24 Dec. O Lady, nurs'd in pomp and pleasure, Whence learnt you that heroic measure? 1819 P. B. Shelley 46 The fierce savage, nursed in hate. 1831 D. S. Bacon 190 One, who from her infancy had been nursed in the purity of the true religion. 1870 B. Disraeli I. xxix. 274 He was the Gascon noble of the sixteenth century, with all his brilliancy, bravery, and boastfulness,..yet nursed in the philosophy of our times. a1916 A. Seeger (1917) 70 His life was nursed in beauty, like the stream Born of clear showers and the mountain dew. 1925 W. Watson 69 These matters are beyond thine understanding; Leave them to minds nursed in the lore of State. 1621 M. Wroth 238 Damn'd Countrey, that must be the death of that, which all the world enuied Italy for, the blessing of nursing braue Amphilanthus. 1807 L. Hopkins et al. 246 Strange as it seems, this happy land, Nurses a Jacobinic band. a1930 R. Bridges (1936) 499 Land, dear land, whose sea-built shore Nurseth warriors evermore. 2. the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > care, protection, or charge > care for, protect, or have charge of [verb (transitive)] > affectionately or tenderly > specifically a thing society > education > upbringing > [verb (transitive)] > with care c1400 (?a1387) W. Langland (Huntington HM 137) (1873) C. xviii. 37 Thenne is flesch a fel wynde in flouryng tyme Thorw lecherie and lustes so loude he gynneth blowe That hit norceþ nise sightes and som tyme wordes. a1542 T. Wyatt (1969) ccl. 5 Why shoulde such spite be nursed then in thy thought? 1546 J. Heywood ii. vii. sig. Kv God graunt..the hed and body bothe too, To nurs eche other, better then they doo. 1584 J. Lyly iii. i Silence shall disgeste what follye hath swallowed, and wisdome weane what fancie hath noursed. a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) iii. i. 15 All th' accommodations that thou bearst, Are nurst by basenesse. View more context for this quotation 1679 15 Our Neighbors may..Nurse this Mitre till it shall devour the Crown. 1704 No. 4068/3 Your Majesty so carefully Nurses our Establish'd Church. 1772 H. H. Brackenridge & P. M. Freneau 17 By commerce nurs'd these embrio marts of trade May yet awake the envy and obscure The noblest cities of the eastern world. 1781 W. Cowper 69 To nurse with tender care the thriving arts. 1834 E. Bulwer-Lytton II. iii. ii. 18 The land we live in yet nurses mysterious terror. 1859 T. P. Thompson II. xcviii. 86 The version of their telegraphic message..is just such as a man would use who wanted to nurse a duel. 1936 G. Greene in 20 Mar. 512/2 A crooked boxing manager who nurses, by means of phoney fights, the publicity value of Lloyd. 1962 37 It would still be right for local talent to be nursed and local derbies to be played. 1980 W. Maxwell (1981) v. 71 She is full of fears, which are nursed by the catastrophes she reads about in the paper. the mind > emotion > aspects of emotion > emotional attitude > hold, entertain, or cherish (a feeling) [verb (transitive)] 1567 W. Painter II. xxvii. f. 274v The ioy of hidden thoughts noursed in my mind. 1606 J. Ford 170 In this secured solace of sweet peace; He nurc't his yonger ioyes. 1631 R. Johnson (ed. 6) i. v. sig. E2 The Empresse came thorow the Gallerie, who espying their secret conference, presently nursed in her secret hate, which shee intended to practise against the guiltlesse Lady. a1763 W. Shenstone (1764) I. 23 Say, shall we nurse the rage, assist the storm? 1797 E. Burke 48 Very great discontents every where prevail. But they only produce misery to those who nurse them at home. 1827 W. Scott 10 July (1941) 74 I had nursed an idea that he had been hasty in his resignation. 1866 W. R. Alger iv. 225 In this profound retreat..he nursed and sang his love for Laura. 1879 W. H. Dixon II. 82 He could nurse his injuries for many years. 1932 J. Masefield 275 His letter never came. Silent she went, nursing the grief that kills. 1955 M. Wheeler (1958) 102 Amongst the criminals..had been one who nursed a grievance. 1988 L. Appignanesi i. 21 Throughout her teens, she nursed an infatuation for her cousin Jacques Champigneulle. the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > cultivation of plants or crops > cultivate plants or crops [verb (transitive)] 1594 T. Kyd tr. R. Garnier iii. iii Let fayre Nylus (wont to nurse your Corne) Couer your Land with Toades and Crocadils. 1645 J. Milton Arcades in 54 I..live in Oak'n bowr, To nurse the Saplings tall. 1655 T. Moffett & C. Bennet xxiii. 227 Turneps..are counted so restorative and dainty, that the Emperour himself nurseth them in his Garden. 1734 M. Barber 49 Your sap should nourish us alone: Why should you nurse this Stranger-Plant? 1781 W. Cowper 573 True charity, a plant divinely nurs'd,..Thrives against hope. 1794 A. Radcliffe I. ix. 252 Her favourite plants, which St. Aubert had taught her to nurse. 1807 C. Smith 87 Magic powers Guard the soft buds, and nurse the infant flowers. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus lxii. 41 A flower..Strok'd by the breeze, by the sun nurs'd sturdily. 1908 J. Payne 284 His hopes first nursed by Nature into flower. 1979 (B.B.C.) (Nexis) 9 May FE/W1030/A/28 Some 200,000 rubber seeds have been nursed and crossbred by the institute. 1613 E. Cary iv. vii. sig. Gv Thou nursest flame, flame will not murther thee. a1631 J. Donne (1872) I. iii. xxvii. 247 My Love's all fyer, whose flames my sowle doth nurs. 1677 S. Speed 190 Having Souls where loyal flames are nurst. 1718 J. Dart 20 With gen'rous Faith he nurs'd the kindly Flame, While churlish Vulcan grasp'd the lovely Dame. 1754 G. Jeffreys iii. i. 348 The vestal fire, Nurs'd by chaste breath, and kindled from above. 1785 W. Cowper iv. 383 The few small embers left she nurses well. 1817 W. Gifford tr. Juvenal II. xiv. 170 The fire, derived, at first, From a small sparkle, by your folly nurst, Blown to a flame. 1857 T. Hughes i. iv. 81 And there he found his father nursing a bright fire. 1872 W. Black xxv. 352 Nursing this volcano of wrath in his breast. 1923 W. J. Locke vii. 94 We are but nursing the lamp of la Ville Lumière till better times. 1957 J. Agee ii. xi. 158 Although the night was warm, he was nursing a small fire. 1992 30 Sept. 11/7 When everyone was seated, Hoshino lit piles of red peppercorns and rice hulls, nursing the deadly little blaze with a fan. the world > action or operation > prosperity > advancement or progress > [verb (transitive)] > cause to advance or develop the world > action or operation > continuing > progress, advance, or further continuance > furtherance > further [verb (transitive)] > cause to grow or develop into 1659 W. Chamberlayne iv. ii. 27 Now behold Me..Despis'd and poor, the scorn of those that were Nurs'd into life by my indulgent care. 1702 C. Beaumont (new ed.) xvi. lxxxix. 250 Nine Fictitious Sisters, whom kind Poets..nurst Into fond Deities. a1748 J. Thomson (1830) II. 227 Talbot's friendship glows to future times,..Nursed, by experience, into slow esteem. 1775 S. Johnson 4 Whose kindness was employed to nurse them into mischief. 1800 T. Moore tr. Anacreon xlvi. 22 Little infant fruits we see Nursing into luxury! 1860 J. Tyndall ii. xxiv. 353 In this way crystals can be nursed to an enormous size. 1868 E. Edwards I. xiii. 248 Men..who fancied it to be their interest..to nurse the embers of the old enmity into a flame. 1915 J. Buchan i. 32 He was nursing his nerves back to health, for he had had a pretty trying time. 1933 P. Godfrey ix. 131 A good play which does not catch on at once may sometimes be ‘nursed’ to genuine success. 1963 6 May 19/6 A crowd already nursed to a happy pitch of electoral enthusiasm by the chanting and dancing of Suk and Kalenjin tribesmen. 1991 13 May 9/8 Part of the urgency behind the Administration's proposals lies in wanting to nurse the banks back to health. society > authority > control > [verb (transitive)] > manage or administer 1745 17 Protestants, who..have swarmed into many Stocks, built Houses,..and nursed the Land. 1790 346 The young lord's estate was what they call nursed by his steward, during the time his lordship was a minor. 1815 W. Scott I. ii. 21 He nursed what property was yet left to him. 1848 A. Brontë III. xv. 307 She's a widow,..only one child—and she's nursing a fine estate for him. 1898 XIX. 1334/2 He now spent ten years quietly at home,..nursing the estate, which had so severely suffered. 1912 July 103 The ‘bull’..becomes a ‘stale’ bull, and drifts into the position frequently described as ‘holding the baby’—that is to say, nursing a stock or share, perhaps for months, in the vague hope of getting rid of it some day at a profit. 1944 58 638 Nor..would there be any task of ‘nursing’ the loans, setting up reserves for possible loss, etc. 2001 (Nexis) 14 Feb. Customers who over-bought in October–November when they feared prices would rise are now nursing stock or keeping out of the market in anticipation of prices softening further. 1863 W. C. Baldwin vi. 200 I nursed my nag to the best of my judgment, rowelling him well, but holding him fast by the head. 1875 A. Trollope I. iii. 15 I never could nurse a horse when the hounds were going well in order to be in at the finish. 1903 E. Childers xii. 125 Davies nursed our walnut-shell tenderly over their crests. 1933 H. Allen vii. 86 Through the afternoon he nursed the mare along with a hundred little attentions that a cavalryman knows. 1937 Nov. 84 (advt.) The low centre of gravity and anti-roll control bars nurse it round bends at speed. 1953 C. A. Lindbergh ii. vi. 185 Once in the air, I can nurse my engine all the way to Paris. 1988 Oct. 18/2 He spent the bulk of the year in a Group N Lancia, which often has to be nursed over the rougher stages, and consequently doesn't give much chance to display sheer speed. 3. the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > feed or nourish [verb (transitive)] > suckle a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun (Royal) v. 1995 The chyld than gert thai tendyrly Be nursyt [Nero nwrist] quhill thare wes gane by..full sewyn yhere. 1535 Exod. ii. 9 Take this childe, and nurse it for me... The woman toke the childe, and nursed it. 1546 T. Phaer T ij So is it..comly for the own mother to nource her own childe. 1600 J. Pory tr. J. Leo Africanus 55 The women would not willingly nurse their owne children, but caused them to be suckled by goates. a1630 F. Moryson in (1903) v. i. 453 The mothers nurse not their owne Children, but send them forth (as in England) to be nursed in the Country. c1670 A. Wood (1891) I. 44 As she nursed his 3 elder brothers, so she nursed him. 1717 J. Addison in J. Dryden et al. tr. Ovid iii. 86 The Niseans, in their dark Abode, Nurs'd secretly with Milk the thriving God. 1756 tr. J. G. Keyssler I. 462 His parents..sent their son to be nursed in the village of Settignano. 1798 E. Sotheby 18 Her smiling babes, were to Bologna sent, There to be nurs'd, then taught with tend'rest care, Whate'er can form the brave, or grace the fair. 1827 P. Maxwell tr. C. A. Dard Hist. Sufferings Picard Family i, in tr. 19 My mother was then nursing my youngest sister. 1864 Ld. Tennyson Enoch Arden in 9 Annie,..Nursing the sickly babe, her latest-born. 1896 T. C. Allbutt et al. I. 413 So many mothers are unable to nurse their babies that a large proportion of infants have to be brought up by other means. 1938 R. Narayan vi. 79 Otherwise I shouldn't be here, but nursing children and cooking for a husband. 1955 B. Spock (Cardinal ed., rev.) 64 There are women who have nursed babies and whose breasts have become flatter with the years. 1985 S. Hastings i. 7 Sydney was determined to nurse the baby herself in spite of the considerable discomfort this caused. 1565 T. Norton & T. Sackville iv. i Thou neuer suckte the milke of womans breaste But from thy birth the cruell Tigres teates Haue nursed. the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > feed or nourish [verb (transitive)] 1591 E. Spenser tr. J. du Bellay Visions vi, in sig. Y3 I saw a Wolfe vnder a rockie caue Noursing two whelpes. 1593 T. W. lix Uenus Doues my selfe will finely feede: And nurce her sparrowes and her milke white Swans. 1655 P. Massinger iii. i. 44 If Tigres did not nurse you, or you suck The milk of a fierce Lioness, shew compassion Unto your selves in being reconcil'd. a1678 A. Marvell in F. T. Palgrave II. cxli. 112 With sweetest milk and sugar first I it [sc. a fawn] at my own fingers nursed. 1690 J. Locke ii. xi. 69 A Bitch will nurse, play with, and be fond of young Foxes, as much as, and in place of her Puppies. 1760 F. Fawkes tr. Anacreon Odes in tr. Anacreon xxxiii. 15 Some, quite fledg'd and fully grown, Nurse the Younglings as their own. 1777 (Royal Soc.) 67 19 Every one of those bees..is capable of becoming a queen-bee, if the whole community should think it proper to nurse it in a particular manner. 1850 J. S. Blackie 174 The dove her dovelets nursing, Fears the tree-encircling serpent. 1900 H. G. Graham (1901) I. 6 The midden-fowls feasted and nursed their broods among nettles and docks. 1938 M. K. Rawlings xvi. 184 With me gone, you'll not have no time to nuss that fawn. 1984 A. C. Duxbury & A. Duxbury xiv. 436 The young [marine mammals] are born live and are nursed by their mothers. the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > supply with food [verb (intransitive)] > give suck 1645 R. Josselin 30 Nov. (1976) 51 God good and gratious to us: in my wives and babes health, enabling her to nurse. 1745 E. Haywood I. vi. 370 She assured her that the Child she enquired after was alive, and a fine Boy; and that he was with a Person who indeed nursed. 1788 W. Buchan (ed. 10) 38 One of the most common faults of those who nurse for hire, is to dose children with stupefactives. 1843 R. J. Graves xxiii. 290 When such persons begin to nurse, you should watch the effect of this new drain on the system. 1851 W. B. Carpenter (ed. 2) 316 That which may be superfluous is..eliminated by the Liver, the Sebaceous follicles of the Skin, and, in the female when nursing, by the Mammary glands. 1981 S. Kitzinger (ed. 4) ii. 57 Women are naturally thirsty when nursing. the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > processes or manners of eating > eat via specific process [verb (intransitive)] > suck > at breast the world > animals > by eating habits > [verb (intransitive)] > take the breast 1696 J. Gordon 20 Mar. (1949) 61 On the 20 I went to Fechill my youngest son ther nursing being sick. 1893 E. P. Davis & J. Keating xxiii. 74 A sore or cracked nipple may bleed when the infant nurses. 1897 9 40 The child seemed languid, and would not nurse. 1938 M. K. Rawlings xi. 98 The fawn nuzzled her full udders and began to nurse. 1963 M. McCarthy x. 223 If they gave him a second drink of water, he might not nurse properly when feeding time finally came. 1980 J. C. Oates (1981) ii. 115 The baby..started to nurse, its blind, greedy little mouth grabbing at the nipple. 4. the world > health and disease > healing > art or science of medicine > practice of healing art > practise the healing art [verb (transitive)] > tend the sick 1562 J. Heywood ii. vii God graunt (quoth I) the head and bodie both twoo. To nourse eche other, better then they doo. 1671 J. Milton 1487 Sons wont to nurse thir Parents in old age, Thou in old age car'st how to nurse thy Son. View more context for this quotation 1751 B. Franklin Appeal for Hosp. Aug. in (1961) IV. 153 The Difference between nursing and curing the Sick in an Hospital, and separately in private Lodgings, with Regard to the Expence, is at least as ten to one. 1781 S. Johnson Let. 21 Mar. in J. Boswell (1791) II. 420 This season I have been almost wholly employed in nursing myself. 1816 J. Austen I. i. 4 She recalled..how she had..nursed her through the various illnesses of childhood. View more context for this quotation 1837 H. Martineau 154 They will utterly neglect a sick parent or husband; while they will nurse a white mistress with much ostentation. 1881 XII. 305/2 The arrangements for nursing the sick have greatly improved in recent times. 1928 D. H. Lawrence vii. 92 Mrs Bolton had once nursed him through scarlet fever. 1964 M. C. T. Morrison xvi. 89 The patient should be nursed on pillows or foam rubber pads. 1985 E. Kuzwayo ii. ix. 126 He..told me he had come to take me to his home for his wife to nurse me. the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > types of treatment generally > apply type of treatment [verb (transitive)] > treat by taking care of oneself 1778 F. Burney I. xix. 129 She had a bad cold, and chose to nurse it. 1785 in T. Hutchinson II. 417 Tell her it is of great importance to her to nurse her cold. 1813 Lady Burghersh (1893) 26 My cold..has returned, and I am nursing it before I sail again. 1854 Ld. Houghton (1891) I. xi. 497 I am nursing an influenza which came on the evening I got here. 1885 R. Bridges viii. xvii. 99 But sleep, the gracious pursuivant of toil, Came swiftly down, and nursed away her care. 1904 J. London xvi. 148 Blows were struck, and there were always two or three men nursing injuries at the hands of the human beast who was their master. 1941 H. L. Mencken (1942) xii. 193 The poor old man..nursing a hangover from a Bar Association banquet, had thrown in one too many quick ones, and so got himself plastered. 1987 J. Hodgins (1989) v. 342 He put up an amazing fight, for such an old geezer. At least one of those lunk-heads is nursing a blackened eye. the world > health and disease > healing > art or science of medicine > practice of healing art > practise the healing art [verb (intransitive)] > tend the sick 1859 F. Nightingale 6 Bad administrative arrangements often make it impossible to nurse. 1960 C. Day Lewis i. 20 She was known as ‘The Angel’ in the tuberculosis hospital where she had nursed before marriage. 1993 3 Apr. (Weekend Suppl.) p. xviii/5 The idea was that Julie would nurse and Mary write, but in fact she was compelled to go on nursing for more than 10 years, right through the war. 1982 26 Nov. 17/1 The underwriters are nursing a book loss of something like £60 m. The small investors..are also nursing a loss. 1986 22 May 3/7 The Government was nursing a defeat by the Lords on its Education Bill. 1995 1 Jan. 22/5 The retail group..placed it into administrative receivership, leaving creditors of the subsidiary nursing heavy losses. society > education > upbringing > [verb (transitive)] 1584 R. Greene f. 1v He was..so nursed vp in wantonnesse,..that neither the dreade of Gods wrath, nor the feare of his fathers displeasure, could driue him to desist from his detestable kinde of liuing. 1590 W. Clever 2 A bodie almost deuoured..cannot easily be..nursed vp. a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) iv. ii. 132 A Bohemian borne: But here nurst vp & bred. View more context for this quotation 1629 J. Parkinson (title) Paradisi..; or a Garden of all sorts of pleasant flowers which our English ayre will permitt to be noursed vp. 1676 A. Marvell sig. K2v No Christian Emperor did more make it his business to Nurse up the Church. 1719 D. Defoe 191 I was loth..to have them all [sc. goats] to nurse up over again. 1749 H. Fielding II. iv. iii. 15 A little Bird, which he had taken from the Nest, had nursed up, and taught to sing. View more context for this quotation 1797 T. Gisborne xvi. 414 Many a child..has been nursed up in ignorance and prepared for vice by the blind indulgence of the grandmother and aunt. 1814 J. Austen III. xi. 223 After being nursed up at Mansfield, it was too late in the day to be hardened at Portsmouth. View more context for this quotation 1843 W. A. Ferris in (1940) vii. 32 Here he was kindly received, supplied with food and clothing, and nursed up until his health was quite recruited. 1862 M. D. Colt vii. 111 I have nursed up the sick ones, and petted and comforted my children. 1902 J. Conrad Heart of Darkness in iii. 172 My dear aunt's endeavours to ‘nurse up my strength’ seemed altogether beside the mark. 1920 E. Pound Arnaut Daniel in T. S. Eliot (1968) 140 Gentrice did nurse her up, and so advance Her fair beyond all reach of evil name. 1991 C. Lycett Green (BNC) 110 The new farmsteads were being built at the same time, set snugly into shelter beds of oak, beech and elm, nursed up by Scots pines. 6. the world > movement > absence of movement > hold or holding > hold [verb (transitive)] > span or embrace with the hands 1803 W. Irving Lett. Jonathan Oldstyle in 17 Jan. 2/2 I was sitting quietly by my fire side the other morning, nursing my wounded shin. 1849 C. Brontë III. iv. 80 With nonchalant air, and left foot nursed on his right knee. 1886 R. L. Stevenson vii. 61 The cabin-boy Ransome..came in at times from the round-house..now nursing a bruised limb in silent agony, now raving against the cruelty of Mr. Shuan. 1922 ‘R. Crompton’ i. 16 He dashed down the next street, leaving in his wake an elderly gentleman nursing his toe and cursing volubly. 1947 T. Williams v. 87 Steve comes down nursing a bruise on his forehead. 1991 D. S. Mackenzie (BNC) 137 He..went into a paroxysm of agony, nursing the injured arm against his chest and holding out his other hand for money. the world > movement > absence of movement > hold or holding > hold [verb (transitive)] > hold gently or carefully 1850 H. Martineau II. v. viii. 338 The Premier might now have less leisure..for blowing feathers, and nursing sofa cushions. 1853 C. Dickens xxx. 299 Then Caddy hung upon her father, and nursed his cheek against hers as if he were some poor dull child in pain. 1887 ‘E. Lyall’ I. xi. 202 They..drove home again, Francesca nursing a Dying Gladiator in terra-cotta. 1929 A. Ellis 217 Mr. Mahoney ‘nusses’ Joy, pillowing her little sore head in his shoulder. 1955 O. Manning i. iii. 21 He stood holding the parcel—nursing it, rather. 1987 R. Guy x. 87 Imamu nursed his toothpick in desperation. the world > food and drink > drink > drinking > [verb (transitive)] > drink slowly 1942 5 Oct. 13/4 They buy several drinks in the bar, then they come in to catch the floor show, and nurse one drink along. 1946 25 May 65/1 Now she was sitting there,..drinking slowly, the way a girl might nurse along a cocktail who was waiting for some man to join her. 1962 ‘K. Orvis’ xiii. 88 ‘Don't nurse this—drink it!’ I said. She gulped the straight whisky gratefully. 1974 R. B. Parker (1975) xix. 134 A thin black man..was nursing a brandy glass at..the bar. 2001 R. Russo iv. xxxii. 464 Miles found himself nursing a cup of coffee in a window booth at a chowder house in Vineyard Haven. II. Extended uses. †7. slang. the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > deceive [verb (transitive)] 1639 P. Massinger iv. ii. sig. I3 You have nurs'd and lander'd me, hell take you for it. 1785 F. Grose Nurse, to cheat; they nursed him out of it. 1859 J. C. Hotten 69 Nurse, to cheat, or swindle; trustees are said to nurse property, i.e. gradually eat it up themselves. the world > space > distance > nearness > be near to [verb (transitive)] > sit close to society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > public passenger transport > travel on (public vehicle) [verb (transitive)] > keep close to (a rival omnibus) 1858 8 Mar. (Cassell) The cause of the delay was that the defendant was waiting to nurse one of their omnibuses. 1859 J. C. Hotten 69 Two omnibuses are placed on the road to nurse, or oppose each opposition ‘buss’, one before, the other behind. 1882 28 Feb. 3/8 The Defendant had ‘nursed’ one of the Company's cars from Chancery-lane to Charing Cross. society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > racing or race > horse racing > ride horse in race [verb (transitive)] > actions of rider 1893 P. H. Emerson xvi. 75 Some of 'em wanted to ‘nurse’ me, but I managed to give the mare a touch of the spur, and she flew out. society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > billiards, pool, or snooker > [verb (transitive)] > play (the ball) in specific way 1850 27 Jan. 5/3 Stark was a great player; when he got hold of the balls the way in which he kept them together and nursed the cannons was truly surprising. 1857 4 Dec. (Afternoon ed.) 4/4 Mule played, and having skillfully ‘nursed’ the balls, he made a run of two. 1869 J. Roberts & H. Buck 27 When Tieman was 200 points ahead, and sure of a great break, he ‘nursed’ the balls until 70 had been scored. 1896 S. Dixon in W. Broadfoot et al. (Badminton Libr. of Sports & Pastimes) 28 His [sc. Cook's] beautiful delicacy of touch was more striking than ever, and he ‘nursed’ the balls with even more than his old skill. 1934 26 Feb. 14/5 From an unpromising opening he gradually nursed the balls, and, playing a variety of strokes, he ran to 98. 1979 G. Sullivan viii. 155 Billiard experts recognize certain situations as opportunities to ‘nurse’ the two object balls for a long succession of points. 2005 J. R. Cutcliffe & H. P. McKenna i. 9 If the concept being analysed was nursing, an illegitimate case could be a billiards game where the player nurses the white ball up against a red ball. 9. society > authority > office > appointment to office > choosing or fact of being chosen for office > election of representative body by vote > proceedings at election > [verb (transitive)] > keep in touch with constituency 1869 17 Oct. To ‘nurse’ the borough cost him £500 a year at least. 1888 J. Bryce I. xix. 262 An ambitious congressman is therefore forced to think..of his re-nomination, and to secure it..by sedulously ‘nursing’ the constituency during the vacations. 1925 W. S. Maugham vii. 25 Mrs. Garstin..could not bring herself to spend enough money to nurse the constituency. 1949 164/1 He nursed the seat for four years. 1992 E. Pearce xv. 146 He has failed to rise because of local preoccupation with nursing the seat. society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > grants and allowances > support by payment [verb (transitive)] > pay subsidy to (a country) > subsidize a company to prevent bankruptcy 1890 29 Dec. 2/2 The tendency to ‘nurse’ financial houses has grown to a striking extent. 1897 K. S. Ranjitsinhji v. 260 Batsmen..often refrain from punishing a bowler as severely as they might when they feel at home with his deliveries... This is the meaning of ‘nursing’ the bowling. 1950 F. N. S. Creek 86 ‘Nursing’ the bowling... An experienced or well set batsman can often shield a new partner from the particular bowler who is likely to trouble him most. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < |
