# mothering

Pronunciation: US say "MUTH-ur-ing" /ˈmʌðəɹɪŋ/; say "MUTH-uh-ring" UK /ˈmʌðəɹɪŋ/, AUS /ˈmɐðəɹɪŋ/

## Noun

1. The care and nurturing that a mother provides to her child.
   - Simple: The loving care a mother gives to her child as it grows.
   - _Her steady mothering gave the children a deep sense of security._
   - _Researchers debate how much early mothering shapes a person's later life._
2. The protective care a mother gives her young.
   - Simple: The way a mother keeps her child safe from harm.
   - _Instinctive mothering drove her to shield the baby from the surging crowd._
   - _The documentary captured the mothering of elephants guarding their calves._
4. Nurturing or protective behavior like that of a real mother, shown by someone who is not the person's actual mother.
   - Simple: Kind, caring behavior toward someone, much like the way a mother cares for her child.
   - _The veteran nurse's mothering eased the anxious interns through their first shifts._
   - _He resented the constant mothering he got from his older coworkers._

## Verb

3. Present participle and gerund of mother. — present participle and gerund of mother
   - Simple: Present participle of mother. Use this -ing form when the caring action is happening now.
   - _He is mothering the orphaned lambs through the cold nights._
   - _Constantly mothering her grown sons, she still packs their lunches._

## Noun

5. Clipping of a-mothering: the former practice of visiting one's mother or mother church. *(obsolete)* — Clipping of a-mothering (“practice of visiting one's literal or figurative mother or mother church”).
   - Simple: A short form of a-mothering: the old custom of going home to visit your mother or home church.

## Origin

Formed from "mother" combined with the suffix "-ing".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/mothering (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).