Some people would write “child care” while others would write “childcare.” This article will help you understand whether it’s one or two words. It might even be hyphenated, and we’ll help you understand all the rules to do with it.
Child care vs. Child-care vs. Childcare
“Child care” is the best choice if you are writing in American English. It’s appropriate for the words to be separated in this language. In British English, “childcare” is the most appropriate choice. Neither language recognizes “child-care” as an option.
According to Google Ngram Viewer, “child care” is the most popular choice in American English. There isn’t much in it, considering that the one-word variation of “childcare” isn’t too far behind.
According to Google Ngram Viewer, “childcare” is the most popular choice in British English. This time, the difference is much clearer, showing that the one-word option is much better in this case.
The Cambridge Dictionary and The Oxford Dictionary both give entries for “childcare” as one word. However, they also both state that “child care” is an alternative spelling variation.
It might also help to look at The New York Times website to see which form is more common in American English.
According to their website, “child care” is mentioned 16,600 while “childcare” is mentioned 1,420. This difference shows that the two-word variation is much more common in American English.
We can do the same research for British English by using The Daily Mail news site to find out which spelling is more common.
According to their website, “childcare” is mentioned 15,000 while “child care” is mentioned 5,430. Clearly, the one-word variation is the most common one to see in British English.
Is “Childcare” One Word?
“Childcare” is most commonly one word in British English. Since “child” and “care are written together a lot, it makes sense that they should be grouped when the specific thing that is “childcare” is spoken about. British English writers do this to keep their writing simple.
These examples will help you understand more of it:
- It’s not the childcare that I want to get out of this place, but the money!
- I’m here for the childcare job! I think I’ll be good at it.
- Childcare is very important, and I really hope you’ll let me have a go with it.
- This childcare gig is well worth the money! I can’t wait!
Is “Child care” Two Words?
“Child care” is correct as two words in American English. It is common for the words to be separated to allow “child” to modify the noun “care” correctly. If the words were grouped, writers might worry that the meaning would be overlooked or confusing.
Perhaps these examples will help you understand it:
- I would like to look into some child care options if that’s alright with you?
- Child care is very important to us, so we’ll make sure to get it right.
- It’s not all about child care! I’m sure there are other things that we need to focus on.
- I don’t like the child care on offer here! I’ll go elsewhere with my kid.
Is “Child-care” Hyphenated?
“Child-care” is not correct when it’s hyphenated. We do not need to group the two words together in this way because “child” and “care” are already distinctly recognized. Also, because they’re so commonly seen together, the hyphen adds little value to the word.
We can refer to AP Style rules when we want to learn more about hyphenation. However, according to the AP Stylebook, the rules state that compound nouns and adjectives are only created when the hyphen links the two words.
In the case of “child-care,” this rule does not apply.
Here are some examples that might help you with it:
- Correct: If you’re not going to pay for childcare, then why did you have children?
- Incorrect: Child-care is too expensive for me to handle right now.
- Correct: They’re in child care during the day because I’m always too busy.
- Incorrect: This isn’t some simply child-care program that you can ditch your children in!
Is “Care” Capitalized In The Word “Child-Care”?
Since the hyphenated form of the word is not correct, there is no reason to worry about capitalizing it.
However, for both the one- and two-word variations, it’s best to only hyphenate the “child” portion of the word when it starts a sentence.