foster
verb (used with object)
to promote the growth or development of; further; encourage.
foster
1 American
[faw-ster, fos-ter]
/ ˈfɔ stər, ˈfɒs tər /
verb (used with object)
-
fosters,
present (3rd person singular)
-
fostered,
past participle, past
-
fostering
present participle
-
to promote the growth or development of; further; encourage.
to foster new ideas.
- Antonyms:
- discourage
-
to care for a foster child or a pet as a temporary guardian.
The couple fostered two boys until they could be reunited with their birth parents.
Have you ever fostered a kitten that you just couldn’t part from afterwards?
-
to care for or cherish.
-
British. to place (a child) in a foster home.
-
Obsolete. to feed or nourish.
Foster
2
American
[faw-ster, fos-ter]
/ ˈfɔ stər, ˈfɒs tər /
noun
-
Stephen (Collins), 1826–64, U.S. songwriter.
-
William Z(ebulon) 1881–1961, U.S. labor organizer: leader in the Communist Party.
-
a male given name.
foster
1
British
/ ˈfɒstə /
verb
-
to promote the growth or development of
-
to bring up (a child, etc); rear
-
to cherish (a plan, hope, etc) in one's mind
-
-
to place (a child) in the care of foster parents
-
to bring up under fosterage
-
adjective
-
(in combination) indicating relationship through fostering and not through birth
foster mother
foster child
-
(in combination) of or involved in the rearing of a child by persons other than his natural or adopted parents
foster home
Foster
2
British
/ ˈfɒstə /
noun
-
Jodie . born 1962, US film actress and director: her films include Taxi Driver (1976), The Accused (1988), The Silence of the Lambs (1990), Little Man Tate (1991; also directed), Nell (1995), and Panic Room (2002)
-
Norman , Baron. born 1935, British architect. His works include the Willis Faber building (1978) in Ipswich, Stansted Airport, Essex (1991), Chek Lap Kok Airport, Hong Kong (1998), the renovation of the Reichstag, Berlin (1999), and City Hall, London (2002)
-
Stephen Collins . 1826–64, US composer of songs such as The Old Folks at Home and Oh Susanna
Synonym Usage
See cherish.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
fostersimple
-
fosterssimple
-
have fosteredperfect
-
has fosteredperfect
-
am fosteringprogressive
-
are fosteringprogressive
-
is fosteringprogressive
-
have been fosteringperfect progressive
-
has been fosteringperfect progressive
Past
-
fosteredsimple
-
had fosteredperfect
-
was fosteringprogressive
-
were fosteringprogressive
-
had been fosteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of foster
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English fōstor “nourishment,” fōstrian “to nourish”; cognate with Old Norse fōstr; akin to food
Explanation
To foster is to nurture something. A teacher could foster creativity by providing crayons to every student. You can also foster a child, which means the child lives in your home for a time. You may have seen photos of a cat taking care of a baby rabbit, or a pig nursing a litter of puppies: those are little foster families. Foster can be a verb (to foster someone or something) or an adjective used to describe a foster family, child, or parent. The word is from the Old English fostrian meaning "to supply with food, nourish, support," which sounds like what those mama hogs were doing. Unlike adopt, foster has a time limit.
Vocabulary lists containing foster
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It's All in the Family
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Eligible UASCs, like other young people in foster, kinship or residential care can remain under local authority care up to the age of 21.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
Jackson entered the race in February and presented himself as a political outsider who had grown up in Georgia's foster care system.
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
“He needs a foster home with a special rescue group that will allow him to rest and relax before moving on to his next chapter,” the shelter’s statement read.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
If you are interested in becoming a foster carer, contact your local fostering service.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
We each took just one extra outfit, hiding it under our clothes so our foster parents wouldn’t notice.
From "Lost Boy, Lost Girl" by John Bul Dau
Lyndsi Foster saw a TikTok video about the cruise last year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2026
Williams’ violation was one of three called Tuesday by the crew led by Scott Foster.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
He played alongside David Foster in the band for the original “Rocky Horror” stage show and took a job once held by Barry Manilow to serve as Bette Midler’s musical director.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026
He added Foster was "very emotional" after the sentencing and the family needed time to grieve properly.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
That dog’s gonna be right jealous you dumped her so easy for something as plain and homely as that skinny, knock-knee Foster girl.
From "The Journey of Little Charlie" by Christopher Paul Curtis
This LAX, unlike the island of civility and good manners Maksik remembers from childhood, fosters alienation and dread.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
The hands-off approach empowers her top talent and fosters trust between her executive team and the board of directors, Tomé told the WSJ Leadership Institute’s Alan Murray.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
But instead of the traditional cutthroat audition setting, where every actor silently sizes up the competition, the Brook Arts Center fosters a warm environment.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
Along with giving tweens and teens something to look forward to, recess encourages movement, builds social confidence, and fosters a sense of community, which are all vital to healthy development.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
The young musicians in modern conservatoires, music colleges and universities study in an environment that fosters respect for and engagement with a multitude of genres and traditions.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
But the museum has not yet fostered an ideal environment for them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026
The growing attractiveness of Madrid has fostered an influx of wealth, especially in real estate -- but the bonanza has come at a cost.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
These sanitized accounts ignored the homemade dangers, such as the health problems fostered by an overstretched military — realities many children would face when a changed parent finally came home.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
Fierce competition for open roles, a flood of AI-generated communication from both job candidates and recruiters, and an always-on communication culture fostered during pandemic-era remote work have sped up the clock on the hiring process.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
I couldn’t imagine that any of the other islanders would have fostered me had I drifted up on their piece of land.
From "Beyond the Bright Sea" by Lauren Wolk
Another obstacle to fostering is societal change in families, she said.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
"It's been fostering a sense of impunity on the part of the Egyptian authorities that we're seeing play out," he told the BBC.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Institutions also play a role in fostering that love, too.
From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2026
Kruger, 47 years old, accuses her 46-year-old rival of hurting schools in one of the world’s most star-studded cities and fostering a climate of fear.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
In King’s Landing, bribes had been Littlefinger’s domain, whilst Lord Varys had the task of fostering division amongst the crown’s enemies.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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