dry nurse

¹ American  

noun

1. a nurse who takes care of but does not breast-feed another's infant.

2. Informal. a person who tutors and guides an inexperienced person at work.

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dry-nurse ² American  

[drahy-nurs] / ˈdraɪˌnɜrs /

verb (used with object)

dry-nursed, dry-nursing

1. to act as a dry nurse to.

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dry nurse British  

noun

1. a nurse who cares for a child without suckling it Compare wet nurse

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verb

1. to care for (a baby or young child) without suckling

Etymology

Origin of dry nurse¹

First recorded in 1590–1600

Origin of dry-nurse²

First recorded in 1575–85

Example Sentences

After the child had been weaned it was fed by the dry nurse and the mother with pap, made chiefly of honey.

From Museum of Antiquity A Description of Ancient Life by Haines, T. L. (Thomas Louis)

It was not to be expected that Cecily, because she had given birth to a child, should of a sudden convert herself into a combination of wet and dry nurse, after the common model.

From The Emancipated by Gissing, George

You set back there if you want to, and play dry nurse to your twins—your family scandal on one arm and your governor’s boom on the other.

From King Spruce, A Novel by Day, Holman

The regiment, of course, is distributed among the ships, and the Fleet dry nurse 'em.

From Traffics and Discoveries by Kipling, Rudyard

You'll be a dry nurse to a burro, and keep a hospital for infirm puppies, but you will fight game cocks.

From The Octopus : A story of California by Norris, Frank

Related Words

• cradle
• feed
• nourish