care
verb/keə(r)/
/ker/
not used in the progressive tensesVerb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they care | /keə(r)/ /ker/ |
| he / she / it cares | /keəz/ /kerz/ |
| past simple cared | /keəd/ /kerd/ |
| past participle cared | /keəd/ /kerd/ |
| he / she / it caring | /ˈkeərɪŋ/ /ˈkerɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive, transitive] to feel that something is important and worth worrying about
- I don't care (= I will not be upset) if I never see him again!
- He threatened to fire me, as if I cared!
- care about something She cares deeply about environmental issues.
- I don't really care about how much it costs.
- care what, whether, etc… I don't care what he thinks.
- care that… No one seems to care that we need help urgently.
Extra Examples- He hardly cares what he does any more.
- I don't know which she chose, nor do I greatly care.
- No one actually cared what I thought.
- The information is there for anyone who cares enough to find it.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- deeply
- genuinely
- a lot
- …
- about
- for
- be past caring
- [intransitive] care (about somebody) to like or love somebody and worry about what happens to them
- He genuinely cares about his employees.
- They care an awful lot about each other.
- It is good to know that there is someone who cares.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- deeply
- genuinely
- a lot
- …
- about
- for
- be past caring
- [transitive] care to do something to make the effort to do something
- I've done this job more times than I care to remember.
Word OriginOld English caru (noun), carian (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Old High German chara ‘grief, lament’, charon ‘grieve’, and Old Norse kǫr ‘sickbed’.
Idioms
See care in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee care in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishbe past caring
- (informal) used to say that a person is no longer worried about or interested in somebody/something
- I'm past caring what he does.
couldn’t care less
(North American English also could care less)
- (informal) used to say, often rudely, that you do not think that somebody/something is important or worth worrying about
- Quite honestly, I couldn't care less what they do.
for all you, I, they, etc. care
- (informal) used to say that a person is not worried about or interested in what happens to somebody/something
- I could be dead for all he cares!
not care/give a damn (about somebody/something)
- (informal) to not care at all about somebody/something
not care/give a fig (for somebody/something)
- (old-fashioned, British English, informal) not to care at all about something; to think that something is not important
not care/give a hoot | not care/give two hoots
- (informal) not to care at all
- I don’t care two hoots about having money, as long as I’m happy.
not care/give tuppence for somebody/something
- (British English, informal) to think that somebody/something is not important or that they have no value
who cares? | what do I, you, etc. care?
- (informal) used to say, often rudely, that you do not think that something is important or interesting
- Who cares what she thinks?
Would you care for something? | Would you care to do something?
- (formal) used to ask somebody politely if they would like something or would like to do something, or if they would be willing to do something
- Would you care for another drink?
- If you'd care to follow me, I'll show you where his office is.
More About offers and invitationsoffers and invitations- Would you like…? is the most usual polite question form for offers and invitations, especially in British English:
- Would you like a cup of coffee?
- Do you want…? is less formal and more direct. It is more common in North American English than in British English:
- We’re going to a club tonight. Do you want to come with us?
- Would you care…? is very formal and now sounds old-fashioned.
Check pronunciation:
care