Well-cared-for

Given the attention and support needed to thrive.

Reach for it when describing a person, animal, place, or object receiving attentive ongoing care

Every well-cared-for sapling produced new leaves by spring.

• playful

  pampered

  care exceeds ordinary comfort requirements

  not when Pampering can imply indulgence rather than good care.

• everyday

  looked-after

  plain reassurance about ongoing care is wanted

  not when Looked-after is informal and nonspecific.

• everyday

  tended

  regular hands-on attention is the key action

  not when Tended can be competent without affection.

• warm

  cherished

  deep affection is visible in the care

  not when Cherishing does not guarantee practical needs are met.

• warm

  nurtured

  support encourages growth or development

  not when Nurture is wrong for routine machine maintenance.

• professional

  maintained

  condition is preserved through scheduled work

  not when Maintenance sounds mechanical when describing a child.

• neglected
• uncared-for
• mistreated

• well-cared-for child

  The well-cared-for child had trusted adults beyond the immediate family.

• well-cared-for garden

  A well-cared-for garden still left room for wildflowers.

• look well-cared-for

  The rescued dogs began to look well-cared-for after several quiet weeks.

Well-cared-for is not a headword in the dictionaries below. The sense was checked against their entries for well, and the definition and example here are written for Well-cared-for itself.

• Wiktionary, the entry for well, English adverb well, in a good or satisfactory manner, modifying cared-for ↗opens in a new tab · retrieved 2026-07-26

The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.