Phrase guide

candy striper

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A volunteer worker in a hospital or hospice.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: US

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a volunteer worker in a hospital

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: volunteer, unpaid worker

History

Etymology

First appears in the US c. 1944, from candy stripe + -er, due to the red-and-white striped jumpers worn by hospital volunteers, which resembled stick candy (being candy-striped); originally worn by a group of high-school girls who volunteered as hospital workers at East Orange General Hospital in New Jersey.