mother
mother — adjective
1. describing a female parent or the qualities and role usually linked to being a m
describing a female parent or the qualities and role usually linked to being a mother
Visitors at the wildlife centre watched a mother elephant bathe her calf in the muddy pool.
mother + noun: animal parents
Imran keeps his mother's old recipe book on the kitchen shelf and uses it every weekend.
possessive + mother's noun: belonging pattern
The mother cat's loud purring could be heard from across the room whenever her kittens were near.
All the mothers in the neighbourhood took turns walking the children to school.
The mother hen kept her chicks warm under her feathers during the sudden rainstorm.
- maternal
more formal and clinical; used in medical or psychological contexts
- father
male parent, opposite gender
文法句型
mother + noun
2. having a relationship with someone that is like the one a mother has, such as gu
having a relationship with someone that is like the one a mother has, such as guiding or caring for them without being their biological parent
Selim saw his aunt as a mother figure who guided him through every difficult year at school.
mother figure: key compound for this sense
The older teacher became a mother figure for the new students far from home.
mother figure: common compound
After his parents moved abroad, Niran found a mother figure in the kindly teacher who lived next door.
Tariro saw her dance teacher as a mother figure who taught her much more than just steps.
- maternal
less specific; can describe personality without implying a caregiving role
文法句型
mother + noun
用法筆記
Often used as part of a compound noun like 'mother figure' or 'mother substitute' rather than as a standalone modifier.
3. belonging to a person from birth as if inherited or learned naturally from their
belonging to a person from birth as if inherited or learned naturally from their mother, rather than acquired through study
Mandarin Chinese is Bao's mother tongue, but he also speaks English and French.
mother tongue: native language
The ancient cathedral in León serves as the mother church for more than fifty Catholic parishes across the region.
mother church: originating religious institution
Lucía wrote the song in her mother tongue, Quechua, and later translated it into Spanish for the international album.
Élise learned to cook by watching her grandmother, speaking only their mother tongue, Gujarati, in the kitchen.
- native
used with 'language'; 'mother tongue' is the more natural fixed expression
文法句型
mother + noun
用法筆記
Almost exclusively used in fixed expressions such as 'mother tongue', 'mother wit', and 'mother lode'.
常見錯誤
4. serving as the original or main source from which other things of the same kind
serving as the original or main source from which other things of the same kind grow or are produced
The mother ship remained in orbit while the shuttles explored the planet below.
mother ship: source vessel
The original bakery in Marseille became the mother company that now operates twenty branches across France.
mother company: source organisation
All the orchids in the greenhouse were grown from cuttings of the same mother plant.
The research centre in Geneva is the mother laboratory where all of the team's major discoveries began.
- parent
used in similar compounds: 'parent company', 'parent plant'
- offspring
what is produced from the parent stock
文法句型
mother + noun
用法筆記
Common in technical and business contexts: 'mother ship', 'mother company', 'mother plant', 'mother church'. The meaning is always 'the original version that others come from'.
mother — noun
1. the female person who raises a child or brings one into the world, acting as tha
the female person who raises a child or brings one into the world, acting as that child's parent
Heloísa called her mother every Sunday evening to share the week's news.
possessive + mother: standard pattern
Mizuki's mother taught her how to make proper miso soup when she was eight years old.
The mother of the bride wore a blue dress and held a small bouquet of white flowers.
Talia became a mother at the age of twenty-nine and says it changed her life completely.
The stray dog that arrived last winter became the mother of five healthy puppies born in the garden shed.
文法句型
someone's mother
the mother of someone
用法筆記
Can also refer to a female animal that has given birth. The word 'mom' is the more informal American equivalent; 'mum' is British.
常見錯誤
2. a title for a nun who leads a convent or holds a senior rank in a community of r
a title for a nun who leads a convent or holds a senior rank in a community of religious women
Mother Teresa is one of the most famous nuns of the twentieth century.
Mother + name: honorific title
The convent's Mother Superior decided to open a small school for local girls.
Niran spoke with Mother Agnes about joining the order after finishing university.
The mother superior welcomed the visitors with tea and freshly baked bread.
- Mother Superior
specific title for the head of a convent
文法句型
Mother + name
用法筆記
Always capitalised when used as a title before a name: 'Mother Teresa', 'Mother Superior'. Without a name, 'mother' is lowercase: 'the mother of the convent'.
3. in sourdough bread-making, the reserved fermented starter from a prior batch tha
in sourdough bread-making, the reserved fermented starter from a prior batch that gives the next loaf its tangy rise and chewy texture
Sofia fed her sourdough mother every morning with fresh flour and water to keep it bubbly and active.
feed the sourdough mother: regular baker's routine
Beatrix's sourdough mother has been kept alive for twelve years and still produces a perfectly tangy loaf each week.
present perfect + time span: long-term maintenance of starter
The baker shared a piece of his sourdough mother starter with a friend who wanted to start baking at home.
The baker's sourdough mother was over thirty years old and had travelled with him from Germany.
- starter
more common term; 'mother' is more traditional among artisan bakers
- mother dough
alternative name
文法句型
mother + noun (mother dough)
用法筆記
Also called 'mother dough' or 'starter'. The word 'mother' here refers to the culture that 'gives birth' to each new loaf of bread.
4. a gelatinous film or mass of bacteria and yeast that develops in fermenting liqu
a gelatinous film or mass of bacteria and yeast that develops in fermenting liquids such as vinegar or kombucha, kept and reused to start new batches of the same fermented product
Tariro noticed a cloudy film forming on the apple cider and realised it was the mother of vinegar.
mother of vinegar: specific compound
Kombucha is made by adding a SCOBY — also called the mother — to sweet tea.
If you keep the mother from your homemade vinegar, you can use it to start the next batch.
Tariro passed a piece of her kombucha mother to a friend who wanted to brew her own.
文法句型
mother of + liquid
用法筆記
Most often found in 'mother of vinegar' and 'SCOBY' (Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast). The 'mother' is the living culture that transforms the liquid.
5. an abstract force, condition, or source that gives rise to something else, shown
an abstract force, condition, or source that gives rise to something else, shown in the proverb 'Necessity is the mother of invention'
Necessity is the mother of invention, as the old saying goes.
proverb: necessity is the mother of invention
The Nile River, which floods and fertilises the land every year, is often called the mother of Egyptian civilisation.
the mother of + noun: source or origin
In the documentary, a community organiser described lack of opportunity as the mother of crime in poor neighbourhoods.
Many historians regard the Silk Road as the mother of global cultural exchange between ancient East and West.
- source
less poetic; neutral term for origin
- origin
more literal; no metaphorical weight
- wellspring
more literary; suggests continuous flow
- product
result, not the cause
文法句型
the mother of something
用法筆記
Most commonly used in the fixed proverb 'necessity is the mother of invention' and in the pattern 'X is the mother of Y', where X is the driving force or source.
6. a way of addressing or referring to an older woman, especially when the speaker
a way of addressing or referring to an older woman, especially when the speaker does not know her name, used mainly by children or in informal situations
The young courier handed the parcel to the elderly lady and said, "Here you are, Mother, please sign here."
Mother as polite address to elderly woman
The neighbourhood children called the widow next door 'Mother' because she always gave them sweets after school.
The young girl smiled at her elderly neighbour and said, "Thank you, Mother, for the biscuits."
In a 1950s British film, the shopkeeper greets older women with "Good morning, Mother."
- ma'am
more neutral and widely used polite address for a woman
文法句型
Mother (as address)
用法筆記
Now considered old-fashioned in most English-speaking regions. More common in older British literature or certain rural communities. In modern usage it may sound dated or overly familiar.
7. used in the fixed hyperbolic expression 'the mother of all + noun' to describe t
used in the fixed hyperbolic expression 'the mother of all + noun' to describe the biggest, most extreme, or most impressive instance of something, often with playful exaggeration
The storm last night was the mother of all thunderstorms, with hail the size of golf balls.
the mother of all + noun: extreme example
Esme called her final exam the mother of all tests and studied for two weeks straight.
Traffic on Friday evening was the mother of all traffic jams, stretching for over twenty kilometres.
The wedding reception was the mother of all parties, with live music and food from five different countries.
- mother of all
fixed phrase; no single-word synonym captures the hyperbolic meaning
文法句型
the mother of all + noun
用法筆記
Always used in the fixed phrase 'the mother of all + noun'. Originated from the Gulf War phrase 'the mother of all battles' and has since become a general humorous intensifier.
mother — verb
1. to take care of someone with the kind of gentle, protective attention that a mot
to take care of someone with the kind of gentle, protective attention that a mother shows, sometimes in a way that is too protective or prevents them from becoming independent
Sofia's grandmother still mothers her as if she were a little girl of five.
mothers + someone: protective care
Talia told her friend to stop mothering her and let her make her own decisions.
stop mothering: disapproving tone
The older students mothered the new arrivals during their first week at the boarding school.
Mizuki likes to mother her younger cousins when they visit, making sure they have snacks and warm blankets.
文法句型
mother + someone
用法筆記
Often carries a slightly negative or critical tone, suggesting that the care is excessive or unwanted. Less common in American English than in British English.
2. to bring a child into the world through childbirth; also used more broadly to me
to bring a child into the world through childbirth; also used more broadly to mean to create or originate something as its source
Noor's great-grandmother mothered three children before her thirtieth birthday.
mothered + number + children: gave birth to
Dr. Okafor is widely credited with mothering an entirely new branch of cancer research at the Kampala institute.
mothering an idea: figurative creation
Hui's great-grandmother mothered eight children in a fishing village where there was no school.
The architect says she mothered the design for almost a decade before the city council approved the project.
- give birth to
the neutral, everyday expression for having a child
- bear
more formal; used in written contexts
- create
used for the figurative sense only
文法句型
mother + child
mother + idea/project
用法筆記
When used literally for giving birth, 'mother' is less common than 'give birth to' and sounds somewhat formal or literary. The figurative use ('mother an idea') is more common in modern writing.