nourish

English

Etymology

From Middle English, from Old French nouriss-, stem of one of the conjugated forms of norrir, from Latin nutrire (“to suckle, feed, foster, nourish, cherish, preserve, support”).

Noun

nourish (plural nourishes)

1. (obsolete) A nurse.

Verb

nourish (third-person singular simple present nourishes, present participle nourishing, simple past and past participle nourished)

1. To feed and cause to grow; to supply with matter which increases bulk or supplies waste, and promotes health; to furnish with nutriment.
   • Bible, Is. xliv. 14

     He planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.

2. To support; to maintain.
   • Shakespeare

     I in Ireland nourish a mighty band.

3. To supply the means of support and increase to; to encourage; to foster; as, to nourish rebellion; to nourish the virtues.
4. To cherish; to comfort.
   • Bible, James v. 5

     Ye have nourished your hearts.

5. To educate; to instruct; to bring up; to nurture; to promote the growth of in attainments.
   • Bible, 1 Timothy iv. 6

     Nourished up in the words of faith.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Chaucer to this entry?)

6. To promote growth; to furnish nutriment.
7. (intransitive, obsolete) To gain nourishment.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)

Derived terms

• nourishment

Related terms

• nurse
• nutriment
• nutrition

Translations

feed and cause to grow

• Armenian: կերակրել (kerakrel), սնուցել (snucʿel)
• French: nourrir (fr)
• German: ernähren (de)
• Irish:

  Old Irish: ailid

• Italian: nutrire (it)

• Latin: alere
• Portuguese: nutrir (pt)
• Romanian: nutri (ro)
• Spanish: nutrir (es)
• Turkish: beslemek (tr)

External links

• nourish in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• nourish in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• nourish at OneLook Dictionary Search