1
a
: a female parent
She's the mother of three small children.
b(1)
: a woman in authority
specifically
: the superior of a religious community of women
Mother Teresa
(2)
: an old or elderly woman
Mother Hubbard
3
: maternal tenderness or affection
all my mother came into mine eyes and gave me up to tears—
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare4
5
: something that is an extreme or ultimate example of its kind especially in terms of scale
the mother of all construction projects
the mother of all ocean liners
1
a
: of, relating to, or being a mother
b
: bearing the relation of a mother
2
: derived from or as if from one's mother
3
: acting as or providing parental stock
—used without reference to sex
mothered; mothering
ˈmə-t͟hə-riŋ 
ˈmət͟h-riŋ
1
a
: to give birth to
b
: to give rise to : produce
2
: to care for or protect like a mother
plural mothers
1
: a slimy or gelatinous mass or film that contains bacteria, yeasts, or both, that forms in liquids during the process of fermentation, and that is often used as a starter (see starter entry 1 sense 3b) in the production of certain food and beverage products:
a
: mother of vinegar
After about 2 months, when the alcohol has acidified, or when a taste of the vinegar makes your mouth pucker, it's ready to strain and bottle. (You can save the mother to begin a new batch.)—Tejal Rao
Tejal Rao
b
: SCOBY
A kombucha "mother" floats atop a vat of the fermented tea looking like a brown, gelatinous disk of bacteria and yeast, which it is.—Melissa Nann Burke
Melissa Nann BurkeThe brand's approach includes straining out the mother, leaving the kombucha with more of the mouthfeel of traditional teas and other mainstream beverages.—Dale Buss
Dale Buss2
: a dough of fermented flour and water used as a starter especially in baking : mother dough
Each day pieces are taken and used to create new loaves, and the mother is fed to survive.—Sophie Witts
Sophie WittsSynonyms
Examples of mother in a Sentence
Adjective
she often offered to babysit for friends, hoping to satisfy her mother urges until she had children of her own
Verb
She mothered two sons but no daughters.
I hope to mother at least one child.
Recent Examples on the Web
Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 6 July 2024
And if your mother doesn't feel comfortable setting her own boundary, offer to be her excuse.
—R. Eric Thomas, Washington Post, 6 July 2024
Reanna Cruz, Vulture, 25 June 2024
The deals are mothering—literally, Dame Pat McGrath is mother.
—Annie Blackman, Allure, 21 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mother 
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Noun
The 69-year-old hails from an ethnically mixed family – his father is Azeri and his mother is Kurdish.
—Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 6 July 2024
And if your mother doesn't feel comfortable setting her own boundary, offer to be her excuse.
—R. Eric Thomas, Washington Post, 6 July 2024
Verb
That divine feminine energy and the space to create and to mother a project.
—Reanna Cruz, Vulture, 25 June 2024
The deals are mothering—literally, Dame Pat McGrath is mother.
—Annie Blackman, Allure, 21 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mother
Dictionary Entries Near mother
Cite this Entry
“Mother.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mother. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mother
1 of 3 noun
moth·er
ˈmət͟h-ər
1
a
: a female parent
b
: a woman in authority
especially
: a nun in charge of a convent
2
: an elderly woman
3
: cause entry 1 sense 1, origin
necessity is the mother of invention
mother
2 of 3 adjective1
a
: of or relating to a mother
mother love
b
: being in the relation of a mother to others
a mother country
2
: gotten from or as if from one's mother
Medical Definition
mother
noun
moth·er
ˈmət͟h-ər
: a female parent
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