a nurse or nursemaid for children
any person or thing regarded as treating people like children, esp by being patronizing or overprotective
( as modifier )
the nanny state
a child's word for grandmother
(intr) to nurse or look after someone else's children
(tr) to be overprotective towards
1785–95; nursery word; compare Welsh nain grandmother, Greek nánna aunt, Russian nyánya nursemaid
A nanny is a full-time babysitter, someone whose job is taking care of a family's children. If you're a lucky kid, your nanny will be like Mary Poppins or Maria from "A Sound of Music." Being a nanny goes beyond hourly childcare — a nanny is usually the person who spends the most time with a baby or child. A nanny might feed, bathe, play with, and otherwise care for a toddler, or drive an older child to ballet lessons. Most nannies work in the child's home, sometimes even living there. A completely different definition of nanny is "female goat." The word's origin is probably as a nickname for Ann, a generic woman's name, though it's also traditionally used for "close female adult," such as an aunt.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Latifi interviewed the former weekend nanny of a prominent influencing family who never saw her work acknowledged online.
From Salon • May 10, 2026
The Department of Homeland Security said it would investigate allegations that Rep. Eric Swalwell hired an undocumented nanny.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026
She said that Jensen-Lee "was a baby who loved being sung to, being cuddled by his mammy and his nanny and bampy."
From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026
In reality, aside from Zamora, only three others were listed on the company’s payroll: his now ex-wife, her brother and the couple’s nanny.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026
“She is the former nanny of little Lord Sandown,” I replied.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
