nurse
UK[nɜːs]US[nɜːrs]
n
A person trained to care for sick or injured people, especially in a hospital.
n
A woman employed to take care of a young child or children.
v
To take care of someone who is sick or injured.
v
To feed a baby with milk from the breast.
Etymology
The word 'nurse' has a nurturing journey from ancient Latin to modern caregiving. It originates from the Latin verb 'nutrire', meaning 'to nourish, suckle, or foster', which itself is traced to the Proto-Indo-European root (s)na- meaning 'to flow, swim, moisten', conceptually linked to milk. Through Old French, the term entered English with the specific sense of a wet-nurse, a woman who suckles and cares for an infant. Over centuries, the meaning broadened from this primary act of feeding and nurturing a child to encompass the professional and medical care of the sick, while retaining its core semantic essence of providing sustenance, comfort, and attentive support.
Analysis
The modern English word 'nurse' is a simplex form derived from the Anglo-Norman French 'nurice' and Old French 'norrice', meaning a wet-nurse or foster mother. Its ultimate origin is the Latin 'nutricia', a noun meaning 'nurse' or 'nourisher', from the verb 'nutrire' (to nourish, suckle).
Examples
The nurse checked the patient's vital signs regularly.
She decided to nurse her baby for the first year.
He carefully nursed the young sapling back to health.