Definitions of cradle:

• noun:   a baby bed with sides and rockers
• noun:   birth of a person

  Example: "He was taught from the cradle never to cry"

• noun:   a trough on rockers used by gold miners to shake earth in water in order to separate the gold
• noun:   where something originated or was nurtured in its early existence
• verb:   bring up from infancy
• verb:   run with the stick
• verb:   hold gently and carefully

  Example: "He cradles the child in his arms"

• verb:   wash in a cradle

  Example: "Cradle gold"

• verb:   cut grain with a cradle scythe
• verb:   hold or place in or as if in a cradle

  Example: "He cradled the infant in his arms"

• name:  A surname (very rare: popularity rank in the U.S.: #36042)