nourish

 
Pronunciation: /ˈnʌrɪʃ/

verb

[with object]
  • 1provide with the food or other substances necessary for growth, health, and good condition: I was doing everything I could to nourish and protect the baby figurative spiritual resources which nourished her in her darkest hours
  • enhance the fertility of (soil): a clay base nourished with plant detritus
  • 2keep (a feeling or belief) in one’s mind, typically for a long time: he has long nourished an ambition to bring the show to Broadway

Derivatives

nourisher

noun

Origin:

Middle English: from Old French noriss-, lengthened stem of norir, from Latin nutrire 'feed, cherish'