carer

British  

/ ˈkɛərə /

noun

1. Usual US and Canadian term: caregiver.  social welfare a person who has accepted responsibility for looking after a vulnerable neighbour or relative See also caretaker

---

Explanation

A carer is someone who tends to a patient or looks after a young child or elderly person. If your grandfather is very ill, he may need the help of a carer at home. A carer, also called a caregiver, is sometimes a paid helper whose job is caring for people, like a home health aide or a babysitter. Often family members act as carers, tending to elderly or ailing relatives. If your uncle helps your grandfather get into his wheelchair and take his medicine each day, he's a carer. This word is from care and its Old English root, which means both "feel concern" and "grieve."

Example Sentences

Their life together was changing though and Kirsty gave up her paid job as a carer to look after him.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

Donall, who is also autistic and has obsessive compulsive disorder, currently has a carer come in for an hour each day to get him up and dressed.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

Alphie Lonergan is 84 years old and the primary carer for two of his adult children.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

"Donall doesn't get up until the carer arrives - you can't lift a boy in his 40s out of bed and get him up on his feet who doesn't want to do it," he added.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

“She wouldn’t necessarily have wanted you to be my carer through this last bit.”

From "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro