mothering

[ muhth-er-ing ]

/ ˈmʌð ər ɪŋ /

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noun

the nurturing of an infant or small child by its mother.

(in rural England) the custom of visiting one's parents on Laetare Sunday with a present.

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Origin of mothering

First recorded in 1640–50; mother¹ + -ing¹

Words nearby mothering

Mother Goose rhymes, mother hen, motherhood, mother house, Mother Hubbard, mothering, Mothering Sunday, mother-in-law, mother-in-law's tongue, motherland, mother language

How to use mothering in a sentence

A lot of the things she did were very hurtful to her boys but it was all mixed up with her incredible warmth and wonderful mothering skills.
Tina Brown Breaks Down the Biggest Royal Family Revelations From Her New Book|Charlie Campbell / London|April 25, 2022|Time
Some popular TV shows and films offer much more complicated portraits of mothering and comment on the many frustrations and disappointments and imperfections that this experience entails.
Is confidence a cult? These sociologists think so.|Rebecca Jennings|January 18, 2022|Vox
In other words, the gap in mothering time may be shrinking between less-educated and well-educated moms.
The gap in parenting time between middle- and working-class moms has shrunk|Sujata Gupta|July 9, 2021|Science News
They gave birth and then were thrown into mothering as if it were a journey that one should be forced to embark on all alone.
The Problem With Celebrating the Selflessness of Mothers|Anna Malaika Tubbs|May 7, 2021|Time

Making mothering and working an either/or robs us all of the powerful contributions mothers make to our economy.
Why Obama’s Plan for Working Moms Just Won’t Work|Cathy Reisenwitz|July 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At the beginning of the series, she had a husband in prison; she had kids that required a great deal of hands-on mothering.
‘The Good Wife’: Creators Robert and Michelle King on the Season Finale, Alicia and Kalinda, and More|Jace Lacob|April 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
They are now raising a 5-year-old boy who Jennifer is incapable of mothering.
California Police Ignored, Mishandled Sex Assaults Reported by Disabled|Ryan Gabrielson|November 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
But the problem, says Badinter, is how those values have changed—morphing into a style of mothering she calls “crushing.”
Elisabeth Badinter’s ‘The Conflict’: Does Modern Motherhood Undermine Women?|Jessica Bennett|April 23, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And then, of course, there was poor Hester Prynne—branded with a scarlet letter for mothering a child with another man.
Is Cheating the Secret to a Happy Marriage?|Jessica Bennett|October 11, 2011|DAILY BEAST
He was a boy of eighteen, aching over his first love affair; and she was divinely mothering him.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
For behind the mothering words lurked, he knew, the other self that any minute would return.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
And a hint of mothering contentment stole sweetly over him behind this shadowy yet genuine consolation.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
She smiled lazily as she reflected that he would take to mothering; his curly hair begged to be smoothed and tousled.
Mountain|Clement Wood
The little maid repaid him with a passionate love and a quaint mothering care tender and infinitely comforting to the lonely man.
The Major|Ralph Connor

mothering

Origin of mothering

Words nearby mothering

Words related to mothering

How to use mothering in a sentence