Skip to main content

babysitto take care of children for a short period of time while their parents are away

Part of speech: VERB

Definition: to take care of children for a short period of time while their parents are away

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈbeɪbiˌsɪt/

Example Sentences

  • My teenage daughter earns pocket money by babysitting the Smith family's triplets.
  • I thought babysitting would be easy until the toddler tried to paint the cat with yogurt.
  • She has been babysitting for the Johnson family for three years.

babysit

VERB

[/ˈbeɪbiˌsɪt/]

to take care of children for a short period of time while their parents are away

She babysits the neighbor's twins while their parents enjoy a date night.
💡 Concept

She babysits the neighbor's twins while their parents enjoy a date night.

To babysit with a permit, parents must admit trust!
🎵 Rhyme

To babysit with a permit, parents must admit trust!

Got the picture? Now let's practice.

🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˈbeɪbiˌsɪt/
🇬🇧 UK/ˈbeɪbiˌsɪt/

🌳Etymology

Rootbaby + sit

Origin

A compound word formed in the 1940s combining 'baby' and 'sit'. The term originated from the literal concept of sitting beside an infant to watch over and care for them, and gradually evolved to mean the act of caring for children while their parents are away.

Breakdown

baby (infant) + sit (to be seated, to remain in position), forming a compound that originally described the physical act of remaining present to supervise a child.

🎵Rhyme

permitcommitsubmitadmit
permit
commit
submit
admit

🔗Collocations

babysit for someone
babysit children
babysit overnight
professional babysitter
babysit on weekends

📝Examples

My teenage daughter earns pocket money by babysitting the Smith family's triplets.

😄 Fun example

I thought babysitting would be easy until the toddler tried to paint the cat with yogurt.

She has been babysitting for the Johnson family for three years.

😄 Fun example

After babysitting five energetic kids for six hours, I needed a vacation from my vacation job.

📚Related Words

Synonyms

childmindtendwatchcare forlook after

Antonyms

neglectabandonignore

Related

babysitterchildcarenannycaregiverguardian

Want to master 19,000+ words?

Sign up free for flashcards & quizzes.