wean

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   to accustom a baby or young animal gradually to food other than milk and end dependence on nursing

   They began to wean the baby at six months while continuing occasional breastfeeding.

2. 2
   verb

   to detach someone gradually from a habit, dependence, attachment, or source of support

   The clinic helps patients wean themselves off the medication safely.

From Middle English wenen and Old English wenian, 'accustom, train, or habituate,' from a Germanic verb also reflected in wont. The nursing sense arose from accustoming a child or young animal to food and to the absence of the breast; the broader dependence sense preserves the older idea of gradual habituation.

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