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

"Where's yore dry nurse Dingwell?" broke in the ex-convict bitterly.

From The Sheriff's Son by Raine, William MacLeod

“A nice dry nurse you be!” said Jack Gedge.

From Sir Ludar A Story of the Days of the Great Queen Bess by Reed, Talbot Baines

What would become of you, I wonder, if I wasn't to take you in to dry nurse?

From Varney the Vampire Or the Feast of Blood by Prest, Thomas Preskett

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

See, here, Wiggle-and-Skip," I says, "you know that it ain't the nature of a real man to play dry nurse to a dog in public.

From The Four Million by Henry, O.

Related Words

• cradle
• feed
• nourish