Definitions for foster
ˈfɔ stər, ˈfɒs tərfos·ter

Princeton's WordNet(2.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Foster, Stephen Foster, Stephen Collins Foster(adj)

   United States songwriter whose songs embody the sentiment of the South before the American Civil War (1826-1864)

2. foster, surrogate(verb)

   providing or receiving nurture or parental care though not related by blood or legal ties

   "foster parent"; "foster child"; "foster home"; "surrogate father"

3. foster, further(verb)

   promote the growth of

   "Foster our children's well-being and education"

4. foster(verb)

   bring up under fosterage; of children

5. foster, nurture(verb)

   help develop, help grow

   "nurture his talents"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. foster(Noun)

   A forester

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

2. foster(Noun)

   The care given to another; guardianship

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

3. foster(Verb)

   To nurture or bring up offspring; or to provide similar parental care to an unrelated child.

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

4. foster(Verb)

   To cultivate and grow something.

   Our company fosters an appreciation for the arts.

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

5. foster(Verb)

   To nurse or cherish something.

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

6. foster(Adjective)

   Providing parental care to unrelated children.

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

7. foster(Adjective)

   receiving such care

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

8. foster(Adjective)

   Related by such care

   Etymology: fostor, from fustran.

9. Foster(ProperNoun)

   An English surname, variant of Forster.

   Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

10. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A male given name transferred from the surname.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

11. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A town in Rhode Island; named for Rhode Island statesman Theodore Foster.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

12. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A town in Victoria.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

13. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A town in Oklahoma.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

14. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A village in Missouri; named for Ohio governor Charles Foster.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

15. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A town in Wisconsin.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

16. Foster(ProperNoun)

    A village in Nebraska; named for George Foster, original owner of town's site.

    Etymology: (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Webster Dictionary(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Foster(verb)

   to feed; to nourish; to support; to bring up

   Etymology: [OE. fostren, fr. AS. fster, fstor, food, nourishment, fr. fda food. 75. See Food.]

2. Foster(verb)

   to cherish; to promote the growth of; to encourage; to sustain and promote; as, to foster genius

   Etymology: [OE. fostren, fr. AS. fster, fstor, food, nourishment, fr. fda food. 75. See Food.]

3. Foster(verb)

   to be nourished or trained up together

   Etymology: [OE. fostren, fr. AS. fster, fstor, food, nourishment, fr. fda food. 75. See Food.]

4. Foster(verb)

   relating to nourishment; affording, receiving, or sharing nourishment or nurture; -- applied to father, mother, child, brother, etc., to indicate that the person so called stands in the relation of parent, child, brother, etc., as regards sustenance and nurture, but not by tie of blood

   Etymology: [OE. fostren, fr. AS. fster, fstor, food, nourishment, fr. fda food. 75. See Food.]

5. Foster(noun)

   a forester

   Etymology: [OE. fostren, fr. AS. fster, fstor, food, nourishment, fr. fda food. 75. See Food.]

6. Foster(noun)

   one who, or that which, fosters

   Etymology: [OE. fostren, fr. AS. fster, fstor, food, nourishment, fr. fda food. 75. See Food.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Foster

   Foster is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, in the United States. The population was 4,606 at the 2010 census.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Foster

   fos′tėr, v.t. to bring up or nurse: to encourage.—ns. Fos′terāge, the act of fostering or nursing; Fos′ter-broth′er, a male child, fostered or brought up with another of different parents; Fos′ter-child, a child nursed or brought up by one who is not its parent; Fos′ter-daugh′ter; Fos′terer; Fos′ter-fa′ther, one who brings up a child in place of its father; Fos′terling, a foster-child; Fos′ter-moth′er, one who suckles a child not her own; Fos′ter-nurse (Shak.), a nurse; Fos′ter-par′ent, one who rears a child in the place of its parent; Fos′ter-sis′ter, one brought up as a sister by the same parents, but not a sister by birth; Fos′ter-son, one brought up as a son, though not a son by birth. [A.S. fóstrian, to nourish, fóstor, food.]

2. Foster

   fos′tėr, n. (Spens.) a forester.

British National Corpus

1. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'foster' in Verbs Frequency: #1110

Anagrams for foster »

1. fetors

2. forest

3. softer

4. fortes

How to pronounce foster?

1. Alex

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

How to say foster in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of foster in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of foster in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of foster in a Sentence

1. Victor Casale:

   I have spent my life trying to create truly global shade palettes because I know what its like to be with a person who has finally found their exact match. They feel included and recognized, and I am hoping every child who uses these crayons and finds their shade will have that feeling, with the world growing more diverse than ever before, Crayola hopes our new Colors of the World crayons will increase representation and foster a greater sense of belonging and acceptance.

2. Andrew Wilkie:

   My focus now turns to doing what I can to help settle the situation down and foster stable government.

3. Zhang Baohui:

   We can see their (PLA) posture is starting to change and they moving to a new role, in part, we can see them attempting to foster a greater sense of nationality in Hong Kong.

4. Alex Hawke:

   We are asking businesses to report on both what has and what has not worked in their efforts to stamp out modern slavery, over time, we believe this bill will foster a 'race to the top' culture that will ensure Australia is a regional and world leader in tackling modern slavery in supply chains.

5. Margaret Shavlik:

   If children do prefer storybooks with causal explanations, adults might seek out more causally rich books to read with children -- which might in turn increase the child's motivation to read together, making it easier to foster early literacy.

Images & Illustrations of foster

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