care for

English

Verb

care for (third-person singular simple present cares for, present participle caring for, simple past and past participle cared for)

1. (transitive) To attend to the needs of, especially in the manner of a nurse or personal aide.

   Synonym: look after

   I cared for my ailing mother for five years.

   • 1950 January, “Notes and News: George Bradshaw's Grave”, in Railway Magazine, page 62:

     The grave is still cared for by the local authorities, and the monument is in an excellent state of preservation.

2. (transitive) To like or appreciate; to consider to be appealing, tasteful, or suitable.
   • 1719 December 14, “To Dr. Sheridan”, in W. E. Browning, editor, The Poems of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Vol. 2, Jonathan Swift:

     Mrs. Dingley and Mrs. Johnson say, truly they don't care for your wife's company, though they like your wine.

   • 1919, Virginia Woolf, chapter 5, in Night and Day:

     "Do you really care for this kind of thing?" he asked at length.

   • 2006 April 17, Unmesh Kher, “Whale On the Plate”, in Time:

     Still, while most Japanese may not care for the meat, many object to calls to stop whaling.

Usage notes

• In the sense of like or appreciate, often used in negative constructions, as in: I do not care for chocolate or questions like Would you care for a cucumber sandwich?

Synonyms

• (to like or appreciate): think much of
• (to see to): besee

References

• “care for”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• forearc