- nurse
- I UK [nɜː(r)s] / US [nɜrs]
noun [countable]
Word forms "nurse":
singular nurse plural nurses
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1)a) someone who is trained to look after ill or injured people, usually in a hospitalb) someone who performs basic health checks and gives immunizations at a doctor's surgery2) old-fashioned a woman whose job is to look after a young child
II UK [nɜː(r)s] / US [nɜrs] verb
Word forms "nurse":
present tense I/you/we/they nurse he/she/it nurses present participle nursing past tense nursed past participle nursed
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1)a) [intransitive/transitive] to look after someone who is ill or injurednurse someone back to health (= until they are healthy again):He nursed troops at the general hospital in Riyadh.
His wife nursed him back to health.
b) to help someone or something to improve or become more successfulnurse something back to health:Chief executive David Michaels nursed the business back to health.
2) [transitive] to help yourself get better after an illness or injury, for example by resting or getting medical treatmentI took over as captain while she nursed a strained muscle.
I'm nursing a cold.
3) [transitive] to feel a strong emotion or have a belief for a long time, especially one that you hide from other peopleHe had nursed a grudge against them for ages.
Gilford still nurses an ambition to become captain of the team.
4) [transitive] if you nurse a drink, you drink it slowly over a period of timeShe stood nursing a cup of tea.
5)a) [transitive] if a woman nurses a baby, she feeds it by letting the baby suck milk from her breastsb) [intransitive] if a baby nurses, it sucks milk from a woman's breast
English dictionary. 2014.