/ ˈmʌðə(r); NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
a female parent of a child or animal; a person who is acting as a mother to a child :
I want to buy a present for my mother and father.
the relationship between mother and baby
She's the mother of twins.
a mother of three (= with three children)
an expectant (= pregnant) mother
She was a wonderful mother to both her natural and adopted children.
the mother chimpanzee caring for her young
2.
the title of a woman who is head of a convent (= a community of nuns )
—see also Mother Superior
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IDIOMS
- at your mother's knee
- the mother of (all) sth
—more at necessity , old
■ verb
[ vn ] to care for sb/sth because you are their mother, or as if you were their mother :
He was a disturbed child who needed mothering.
Stop mothering me!
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English mōdor , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch moeder and German Mutter , from an Indo-European root shared by Latin mater and Greek mētēr .