crèche

American  

[kresh, kreysh, kresh] / krɛʃ, kreɪʃ, krɛʃ /

noun

• crèches
  plural

1. a small or large modeled representation or tableau of Mary, Joseph, and others around the crib of Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem, as is displayed in homes or erected for exhibition in a community at Christmas season.

2. a home for foundlings.

3. British. a day-care center; day nursery.

4. Animal Behavior. an assemblage of dependent young that are cared for communally.

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crèche British  

/ krɛʃ, kreɪʃ, krɛʃ /

noun

1. 1. a day nursery for very young children

   2. a supervised play area provided for young children for short periods

2. a tableau of Christ's Nativity

3. a foundling home or hospital

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Usage

What does crèche mean? A crèche is a nativity scene—a model of a scene depicting the birth of Jesus. Crèches are often displayed in or outside of homes or churches during Advent, the season preceding Christmas, which celebrates the birth of Jesus and is among the most important Christian holidays. A crèche is also commonly called a Nativity scene or simply a Nativity. Crèche is also sometimes used to refer to a childcare facility like a day care. This sense of the word is primarily used in the United Kingdom. It is sometimes seen without the accent mark, which comes from its French spelling. Example: My children’s favorite part of the crèche is the goats and other animals.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• crèches
  plural

Etymology

Origin of crèche

1785–95; < French, Old French < Frankish *kripja crib

Explanation

A creche is a representation of the scene of Jesus Christ’s birth. It's the nativity scene that is displayed at Christmas, with the manger, Mary, Joseph, and the three wise men. Although a creche is the same thing as a nativity scene, if you want to get nit-picky, the creche refers specifically to the baby Jesus in the manger. Crèche is a French word that also refers to a nursery or daycare center. Say creche to a British person and she’ll assume you’re talking about a daycare, 'cause that's what they call it across the pond.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

crèche crèches

"There is a danger in thinking the internet is a crèche," he commented on the BBC website.

From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2025

The group of babies is called a crèche.

From NewsForKids.net ● May 7, 2024

ACLU, in which the Supreme Court held that the Constitution’s establishment clause barred the displays of a crèche and the Ten Commandments in county courthouses.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 16, 2022

Art historians popular in the Vatican’s conservative circles also considered the crèche an unnecessary insult to the injury of a plague year.

From New York Times ● Dec. 18, 2020

I know that Walter is the man who oversees the theater, who helps falsify papers for the children in the crèche.

From "Girl in the Blue Coat" by Monica Hesse

“I’ve seen crèches up to 35 and 50 often, but 70 — that would be a very big crèche,” he told the New York Times.

From NewsForKids.net ● May 7, 2024

In crèches, the maximum ratio is five infants or eight toddlers per adult.

From Slate ● Nov. 30, 2017

It is her description of the nativity scene that has been adapted by most Renaissance artists, and appears today in the countless crèches that abound the world over.

From Salon ● Dec. 25, 2016

France’s pro-natalist policies, historically inspired by the need to breed soldiers to keep Germany at bay, guarantee Scandinavian levels of spending on family benefits and crèches.

From Economist ● May 26, 2016

A system of such crèches had almost entirely replaced the hazardous adventures of the old-world nursing.

From The Sleeper Awakes A Revised Edition of When the Sleeper Wakes by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

Related Words

• child care
• daycare
• nursery
• nursery school
• preschool