wean

[ween]

verb (used with object)

1. to accustom (a child or young animal) to food other than mother's milk; cause to lose the need to suckle or turn to the mother for food.

2. to withdraw (a person, the affections, one's dependency, etc.) from some object, habit, form of enjoyment, or the like.

   The need to reduce had weaned us from rich desserts.

verb phrase

1. wean on,  to accustom to; to familiarize with from, or as if from, childhood.

   a brilliant student weaned on the classics;

   suburban kids weaned on rock music.

wean

¹

/ wiːn /

verb

1. to cause (a child or young mammal) to replace mother's milk by other nourishment

2. (usually foll by from) to cause to desert former habits, pursuits, etc

wean

²

/ weɪn, wiːn /

noun

1. dialect,  a child; infant

Other Word Forms

• weanedness noun
• postweaning adjective
• preweaning adjective
• unweaned adjective
• weaning noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of wean¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English wenen, Old English wenian; cognate with Dutch wennen, German gewöhnen, Old Norse venja “to accustom”

Word History and Origins

Origin of wean¹

Old English wenian to accustom; related to German gewöhnen to get used to

Origin of wean²

a contraction of wee ane or perhaps a shortened form of _weanling

Example Sentences

Ms Hepburn raised concerns about paediatric first aid training being in date and staff education over weaning.

Read more on BBC

“I was living in a body hijacked by the medication,” said Gansky, 29, who is still struggling to wean herself off an antidepressant.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

He called the deal a "decisive step toward definitive energy independence from Russian gas" -- a key goal for Europe, which has struggled to wean itself off imports.

Read more on Barron's

To wean itself off imported oil, China has poured hundreds of billions of dollars into reviving domestic crude production and building the world’s largest electric-vehicle industry.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In the longer term, the deal won’t do anything to stop China’s strategic goal of weaning itself off U.S. soybeans, Suderman said.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• discourage