mother

Universal Words 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) seealsoMOTHERSUPERIOR IDIOMS at your mother's knee when you were very young: I learnt these songs at my mother's knee. the mother of (all) sth (informal) used to emphasize that sth is very large, unpleasant, important, etc: I got stuck in the mother of all traffic jams. moreatOLD 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!