Definition of 'mother'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present tense mothers
, present participle mothering
, past tense, past participle mothered
1. countable noun
2. verb
3. verb
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
mother in British English 1
noun
▶ Related adjective: maternal2. (often capital, esp as a term of address)
a person's own mother
3.
a female substituting in the function of a mother
5.
b.
(as modifier)
mother love
6.
b.
(as modifier)
mother church
mother earth
11. See be mother
12. See the mother of all …
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
mothering (ˈmothering) noun
Word origin
Old English mōdor; compare Old Saxon mōdar, Old High German muotar, Latin māter, Greek mētērWord Frequency
mother in British English 2
noun
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
mothery (ˈmothery) adjective
Word origin
C16: perhaps from mother1, but compare Spanish madre scum, Dutch modder dregs, Middle Low German modder decaying object, mudde sludge
Word Frequency
mother in American English 1
noun
1.
a woman who has borne a child; esp., a woman as she is related to her child or children
3.
the female parent of a plant or animal
4.
5.
a.
a woman having the responsibility and authority of a mother
adjective
8.
of, like, or like that of a mother
verb transitive
11.
to be the mother of; give birth to
often used figuratively12.
to look after or care for as a mother does
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms
motherless (ˈmotherless)
adjective
Word origin
ME moder < OE modor, akin to Ger mutter < IE *matér, mother (> L mater, Gr mētēr, OIr māthir) < *ma-, echoic of baby talk
Word Frequency
mother in American English 2
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word Frequency
mother in American English 1
(ˈmʌðər)
noun
1.
a female parent
2. (often cap)
one's female parent
3.
a mother-in-law, stepmother, or adoptive mother
4.
5.
a term of familiar address for an old or elderly woman
6. See mother superior
7.
to be a mother to someone
8.
the qualities characteristic of a mother, as maternal affection
It is the mother in her showing itself
9.
something or someone that gives rise to or exercises protecting care over something else; origin or source
11. See mother of all
adjective
12.
being a mother
a mother bird
14.
derived from or as if from one's mother; native
his mother culture
transitive verb
16.
to be the mother of; give origin or rise to
17.
18.
to care for or protect like a mother; act maternally toward
intransitive verb
SYNONYMS 18. tend, nurse, mind, raise.Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
motherless adjective
motherlessness
noun
Word origin
[bef. 900; ME mother, moder, OE mōdor; c. D moeder, G Mutter, ON mōthir, L māter, Gk me᷄tēr, Skt mātar-. As in father, th was substituted for d, possibly on the model of brother]Word Frequency
mother in American English 2
(ˈmʌðər)
noun
a stringy, mucilaginous substance consisting of various bacteria, esp Mycoderma aceti, that forms on the surface of a fermenting liquid and causes fermentation when added to other liquids, as in changing wine or cider to vinegar
Also called: mother of vinegar Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Word origin
[1530–40; prob. special use of mother1, but perh. another word, akin to D modder dregs, MLG moder swampy land; see mud]Word Frequency
mother in American English 3
(ˈmʌðər)
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Word origin
[1945–50; euphemistic shortening]Examples of 'mother' in a sentence
mother
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mother
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In other languages
mother
British English: mother
/ˈmʌðə/ NOUN
Your mother is your female parent.
She sat on the edge of her mother's bed.
- American English: mother /ˈmʌðər/
- Arabic: اُمٌّ
- Brazilian Portuguese: mãe
- Chinese: 母亲
- Croatian: majka
- Czech: matka
- Danish: mor
- Dutch: moeder
- European Spanish: madre
- Finnish: äiti
- French: mère
- German: Mutter
- Greek: μητέρα
- Italian: madre
- Japanese: 母
- Korean: 어머니
- Norwegian: mor
- Polish: matka
- European Portuguese: mãe
- Romanian: mamă
- Russian: мать
- Latin American Spanish: madre
- Swedish: mor
- Thai: แม่
- Turkish: anne
- Ukrainian: мати
- Vietnamese: mẹ
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mother
Related terms of
mother
Source
Definition of mother from the Collins English Dictionary
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