Meaning & use
babysitten
Last updated
“babysitten” is a form of “babysit”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
Past participle of babysit: to have taken care of a child for a short time, usually for payment.
Grammar: Used after have/has/had to make perfect tenses, or before a noun as an adjective: I have babysat.
Patterns
- have babysat for someone
- have babysat someone
- have babysat before
She has babysat for the neighbors twice this month.
They had never babysat a baby that young before.
He has babysat every Saturday since the summer started.
verbtransitivefigurative
Past participle of babysit: to have watched and protected something or someone for a short time.
Grammar: Used in perfect tenses with have/has/had; the object is a thing or person being watched.
Patterns
- have babysat something
- have babysat someone's career
The manager has babysat the project while the director was away.
For years she has babysat her brother's political career.
Common combinations
- have babysat for years
- I have babysat for years, so I know how to handle toddlers.
- had already babysat
- By the time we arrived, she had already babysat for three hours.
- have never babysat
- They have never babysat a child with a food allergy.
- has babysat the kids
- My sister has babysat the kids many times.
- have babysat before
- Have you babysat before, or is this your first time?
Synonyms and how they differ
- childsat
- A rare, mostly British term for the same past participle meaning; "babysat" is far more common everywhere.
- minded
- British usage for having looked after children; "babysat" is the standard choice in American English.
Word family
- babysit verb
- To take care of a child for a short time, usually for pay.
- babysitter noun
- A person who takes care of children for short periods.
- babysitting noun
- The activity or job of taking care of children for short periods.
Commonly confused: babysitten or babysitted? babysitten or housesat?
babysitten vs babysitted
A common learner mistake. The correct past tense and past participle is "babysat," not "babysitted."
babysitten vs housesat
Similar form but means having watched someone's home, not their children.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
After "has," the past participle "babysat" is correct. "Babysitten" and "babysitted" are nonstandard forms, and "babysit" is the base form, which cannot follow "has" here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “babysitten”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.