Meanings
present singular third person cares for · participle present caring for · participle past cared for · past cared for
- transitiveTo attend to the needs of, especially in the manner of a nurse or personal aide.
I cared for my ailing mother for five years.
1 more example
The grave is still cared for by the local authorities, and the monument is in an excellent state of preservation.
1950 January, “Notes and News: George Bradshaw's Grave”, in Railway Magazine, page 62Synonyms: besee, look after, take care of
- transitiveTo like or appreciate; to consider to be appealing, tasteful, or suitable.
"Do you really care for this kind of thing?" he asked at length.
1919, Virginia Woolf, chapter 5, in Night and Day2 more examples
Mrs. Dingley and Mrs. Johnson say, truly they don't care for your wife's company, though they like your wine.
1719 December 14, “To Dr. Sheridan”, in W. E. Browning, editor, The Poems of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Vol. 2, Jonathan SwiftStill, while most Japanese may not care for the meat, many object to calls to stop whaling.
2006 April 17, Unmesh Kher, “Whale On the Plate”, in TimeSynonyms: think much of
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo attend to the needs of, especially in the manner of a nurse or personal aide.
verbTo like or appreciate; to consider to be appealing, tasteful, or suitable.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Esperanto zorgi
- zorgito look after — see also look after, take care of
French soigner
- soignerto look after — see also look after, take care of
Greek φροντίζω, νοιάζομαι
- φροντίζω (frontízo)to look after — see also look after, take care of
- νοιάζομαι (noiázomai)to look after — see also look after, take care of
Polish troszczyć się o, opiekować się
- troszczyć się oto look after — see also look after, take care of
- opiekować sięto look after — see also look after, take care of
- pielęgnowaćto look after — see also look after, take care of
Turkish bakmak, göz kulak olmak
- bakmakto look after — see also look after, take care of
- göz kulak olmakto look after — see also look after, take care of
Cite this entry
care for. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/care%20for
“care for.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/care%20for. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “care for,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/care%20for.
Source: care for on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.