English

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Verb

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cradling

  1. present participle and gerund of cradle
    The woman was cradling the baby in the crook of her arm as she fed it.

Noun

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cradling (plural cradlings)

  1. The act by which one cradles a child etc.
    • 1967, Stuart A. Altmann, Social communication among primates:
      About four thousand cradlings were observed among five mother-infant pairs during the first 15 weeks of each infant's life.
  2. The act of using a cradle (the tool).
  3. (coopering) The cutting of a cask into two pieces lengthwise, to enable it to pass a narrow place, the two parts being afterwards united and rehooped.
  4. (carpentry) The framework in arched or coved ceilings to which the laths are nailed.
    • 1853, Thomas Tredgold, Elementary Principles of Carpentry:
      the ceiling of the circular part is deeply panelled, the main ribs forming the core for the cradling

References

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