Care (verb) means to feel concern or interest for someone or something, or to provide what a person or animal needs. As a noun, care means serious attention and caution, or the process of looking after someone who needs help or protection.
What Does Care Mean?
Care is one of the most versatile and high-frequency words in English. It works both as a verb and a noun, and its meaning shifts depending on context — from emotional concern to physical looking after, from professional medical duty to a simple expression of farewell ("Take care!").
When used as a verb, care typically collocates with prepositions: care about expresses emotional investment ("She cares about doing the right thing"), while care for describes either the act of looking after someone or, in more formal usage, a preference ("I don't care for horror films"). The phrasal verb take care of covers both meanings and is extremely common in spoken British English.
As a noun, care often appears in compound nouns and fixed phrases: health care, childcare, duty of care, handle with care, in the care of. Mastering these fixed expressions will help you use the word naturally at both B1 and B2 level.
Example Sentences (A2–C1)
| Sentence | Level | Usage note |
|---|---|---|
| She cares deeply about environmental issues. | A2 | care about = feel something is important |
| Please take care of the plants while I am away. | A2–B1 | take care of = look after |
| The nurse cared for the patients with great dedication. | B1 | care for = provide professional or personal help |
| Handle the glassware with care — it is extremely fragile. | B1–B2 | with care = noun in fixed phrase, meaning caution |
| The organisation has a legal duty of care towards its employees. | C1 | duty of care = formal/legal obligation to protect others |
Collocations
| Collocation | Example |
|---|---|
| take care of | She takes care of her younger brother every afternoon. |
| care about | He genuinely cares about the wellbeing of his students. |
| handle with care | The label on the box read: Handle with care. |
| medical care | Access to free medical care is a key principle of the NHS. |
| duty of care | Schools have a duty of care towards every pupil on their premises. |
| with great care | She restored the painting with great care and precision. |
| care home | His grandmother moved into a care home last spring. |
| couldn't care less | He couldn't care less what others think of his fashion choices. |
| take care | "Take care!" she called as he left for his trip. |
| in the care of | The children were left in the care of their grandparents. |
Care about vs care for: Use care about for things that matter emotionally to you. Use care for when you are physically looking after someone, or in the formal negative pattern "I don't care for..." (meaning "I don't like...").
Couldn't care less (British) vs could care less (American): In British English, the correct form is couldn't care less — meaning there is no room left to care any less. "Could care less" is common in American speech but is considered illogical by many.
Care as a noun in compounds: British English has many compound nouns with care: healthcare, childcare, aftercare, skincare, care home. These are usually written as one word or two separate words — check a British dictionary if unsure.
Common Mistakes
Watch Out For
I care about to protect the environment.
I care about protecting the environment. (care about is followed by a gerund, not an infinitive)
She cared for her health very much.
She cared deeply about her health. (use care about for feelings of importance, not care for)
I could care less about football.
I couldn't care less about football. (British English — use the negative form to mean "I have no interest at all")