different between nurture vs nourish

English

Alternative forms

• nouriture (obsolete)
• nutriture (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English norture, noriture, from Old French norriture, norreture, from Late Latin nutritura (“nourishment”), from Latin nutrire (“to nourish”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n???.t???/
• Rhymes: -??(?)t??(?)

Noun

nurture (countable and uncountable, plural nurtures)

1. The act of nourishing or nursing; tender care

   Synonyms: upbringing, raising, education, training

2. That which nourishes; food; diet.
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, A Veue of the Present State of Ireland

     Other great houses there be of the English in Ireland, which, through licentious conversing with the Irish, or marrying, or fostering with them or lack of meet nurture, or other such unhappy occasions, have degenerated from their ancient dignities and are now grown as Irish as O'Hanlon's breech, as the proverb there is.

3. The environmental influences that contribute to the development of an individual (as opposed to "nature").
   • 1649, John Milton, Eikonoklastes

     A man neither by nature nor by nurture wise.

Translations

Verb

nurture (third-person singular simple present nurtures, present participle nurturing, simple past and past participle nurtured)

1. To nourish or nurse.
2. (figuratively, by extension) To encourage, especially the growth or development of something.
   • 2009, UNESCO, The United Nations World Water Development Report – N° 3 - 2009 – Freshwater and International Law (the Interplay between Universal, Regional and Basin Perspectives), page 10, ?ISBN

     The relationships between universal norms and specific norms nurture the development of international law.

Synonyms

• (figuratively, to encourage): See Thesaurus:nurture

Related terms

• nourish
• nourishment
• nurse
• nursery
• nurturance
• nutrient
• nutriment
• nutrition
• nutritional
• nutritious
• nutritive

Translations

Further reading

• nurture in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• nurture in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• U-turner, untruer

Middle English

Noun

nurture

1. Alternative form of norture

English

Etymology

From Middle English norischen, from Old French nouriss-, stem of one of the conjugated forms of norrir, from Latin nutrire (“to suckle, feed, foster, nourish, cherish, preserve, support”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, NYC, other accents without the "Hurry-furry" merger) IPA^(key): /?n??.??/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?n??.??/, /?n?.??/
  • (hypercorrection) IPA^(key): /?n??.??/
• (accents without the hurry–furry merger)
• (accents with the hurry–furry merger)

Noun

nourish (plural nourishes)

1. (obsolete) A nurse.

Verb

nourish (third-person singular simple present nourishes, present participle nourishing, simple past and past participle nourished)

1. To feed and cause to grow; to supply with matter which increases bulk and/or supplies waste, and promotes health.
   • 1638, Francis Bacon, The Historie of Life and Death

     other carnivorous Animals are difficultly nourished by Plants alone

   • 1872, Thomas Bull, The Maternal Management of Children, in Health and Diseases

     Children nourished exclusively upon this simple food will be found to enjoy more perfect health

   • 1996, Alexander Frank Skutch, Orioles, Blackbirds, and Their Kin: A Natural History

     we have ample evidence that male Bobolinks do not shirk the labor of nourishing their families. In a four-year study, Wittenberger (1980, 1982) found that males delivered about 60 Bobolink percent of the food.

2. To support; to maintain; to be responsible for.
3. To encourage; to foster; to stimulate
   • 2003, Marilyn Byfield Paul, It's Hard to Make a Difference When You Can't Find Your Keys

     When we slow down to pay attention to our own experience, we open ourselves to the love and richness that is here all the time. These are moments that can nourish your connection to your heart.

   • 2010, Colin L. Powell, My American Journey

     I thanked the Fort Leavenworth military historian, Colonel von Schlemmer, for nourishing my first hope to memorialize the Buffalo Soldiers

   to nourish rebellion

   to nourish virtues

4. To cherish; to comfort.
   • 1611, King James Version, James v. 5

     Ye have nourished your hearts.

5. (of a person) To educate or bring up; to nurture; to promote emotional, spiritual or other non-physical growth.
   • 1611, King James Version, 1 Timothy iv. 6

     Nourished up in the words of faith.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Chaucer to this entry?)

6. To promote growth; to furnish nutriment.

7. (intransitive, obsolete) To gain nourishment.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)

Derived terms

• malnourish
• nourish a viper in one's bosom
• nourisher
• nourishing
• nourishment
• overnourish
• undernourish
• well-nourished

Related terms

• nurse
• nutriment
• nutrition

Translations

Further reading

• nourish in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• nourish in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• nourish at OneLook Dictionary Search