Baby-sit
to take charge of a child while the parents are temporarily away.
to baby-sit for (a child):
we’ve placed an ad for someone to baby-sit the youngsters in the evening.
to take watchful responsibility for; tend:
it will be necessary for someone to baby-sit the machine until it is running properly.
contemporary examples
she often left caylee with her mother, who was willing to baby-sit.
in the jury’s hands diane dimond july 3, 2011
verb -sits, -sitting, -sat
(intransitive) to act or work as a baby-sitter
verb
to attend and care for a child, or by extension, for anyone or anything: which is why she has one of us baby-sitting twenty-four hours a day (1940s+)
to be a guide and companion to someone undergoing a psychedelic drug experience
[1960s+ narcotics; back formation from baby-sitter, ”nursemaid, nanny,” attested before 1940]
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