foster
[ faw-ster, fos-ter ]
/ ˈfɔ stər, ˈfɒs tər /
verb (used with object)
to promote the growth or development of; further; encourage: to foster new ideas.
to bring up, raise, or rear, as a foster child.
to care for or cherish.
British. to place (a child) in a foster home.
Obsolete. to feed or nourish.
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RELATED WORDS
feed, advance, champion, uphold, harbor, cherish, serve, back, encourage, nurse, forward, further, nurture, stimulate, cultivate, foment, nourish, raise, favor, oblige
Nearby words
- fossiliferous,
- fossilize,
- fossor,
- fossorial,
- fossula,
- foster brother,
- foster care,
- foster child,
- foster city,
- foster daughter
Origin of foster
before 1000; Middle English; Old English fōstor nourishment, fōstrian to nourish; cognate with Old Norse fōstr; akin to food
SYNONYMS FOR foster
Synonym study
3. See cherish.
Foster
[ faw-ster, fos-ter ]
/ ˈfɔ stər, ˈfɒs tər /
noun
Stephen (Collins),1826–64, U.S. songwriter.
William Z(eb·u·lon) [zeb-yuh-luh n] /ˈzɛb yə lən/, 1881–1961, U.S. labor organizer: leader in the Communist Party.
a male given name.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for foster
foster
/ (ˈfɒstə) /
verb (tr)
to promote the growth or development of
to bring up (a child, etc); rear
to cherish (a plan, hope, etc) in one's mind
mainly British
- 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 birthfoster mother; foster child
(in combination) of or involved in the rearing of a child by persons other than his natural or adopted parentsfoster home
Word Origin for foster
Old English fōstrian to feed, from fōstor food
Foster
/ (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
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
foster
Old English *fostrian "to supply with food, nourish, support," from fostor "food, nourishment, bringing up," from Proto-Germanic *fostrom, from root *foth-/*fod- (see food).
Meaning "to bring up a child with parental care" is from c.1200; that of "to encourage or help grow" is early 13c. of things; 1560s of feelings, ideas, etc. Old English also had the adjective meaning "in the same family but not related," in fostorfæder, etc. Related: Fostered; fostering.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper