- cher|ish
- cher|ish «CHEHR ihsh», transitive verb.1. to hold dear; treat with tenderness; aid or protect: »
A mother cherishes her baby. Cherish those hearts that hate thee (Shakespeare).
2. Figurative. to keep in the mind; cling to: »The old woman cherished the hope of her son's return.
3. to keep or guard carefully.╂[< Old French cheriss-, stem of cherir < cher dear < Latin cārus]–cher´ish|a|ble, adjective.–cher´ish|er, noun.–cher´ish|ing|ly, adverb.Synonym Study 2 Cherish, foster, harbor, when applied to an idea or feeling, mean to keep it in mind and care for it. Cherish implies treasuring it and watching over it with loving care: »to cherish memories of college days, to cherish affection for someone.
Foster suggests nourishing an idea or feeling, and helping it to grow: »to foster tolerance, to foster sentiments of patriotism.
Harbor suggests letting in an idea or feeling even though it is bad, and brooding over it: »to harbor resentment, to harbor sinister designs.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.