Someone's children are their sons and daughters of any age.
How are the children?
His children have left home.
The young couple decided to have a child.
More Synonyms of child
child in British English
(tʃaɪld)
nounWord forms: pluralchildren
1.
a.
a boy or girl between birth and puberty
b.
(as modifier)
child labour
2.
a baby or infant
3.
an unborn baby
▶ Related prefix: paedo-
4. with child
5.
a human offspring; son or daughter
▶ Related adjective: filial
6.
a childish or immature person
7.
a member of a family or tribe; descendant
a child of Israel
8.
a person or thing regarded as the product of an influence or environment
a child of nature
9. English Midlands and Western England dialect
a female infant
Derived forms
childless (ˈchildless)
adjective
childlessness (ˈchildlessness)
noun
childly (ˈchildly)
adjective
Word origin
Old English cild; related to Gothic kilthei womb, Sanskrit jathara belly, jartu womb
Child in American English
(tʃaɪld)
Francis James1825-96; U.S. scholar and collector of Eng. & Scot. ballads
child in American English
(tʃaɪld)
nounWord forms: pluralˈchildren
1.
an infant; baby
2.
an unborn offspring; fetus
3.
a boy or girl in the period before puberty
4.
a son or daughter; offspring
5.
a.
a descendant
b.
a member of a tribe, clan, etc.
often used in pl.
children of Israel
6.
a person like a child in interests, judgment, etc., or one regarded as immature and childish
7.
a person identified with a specified place, time, etc.
a child of the Renaissance
8.
a thing that springs from a specified source; product
a child of one's imagination
9. Archaic
childe
10. British, Dialectal
a female infant
Idioms:
with child
Derived forms
childless (ˈchildless)
adjective
childlessness (ˈchildlessness)
noun
Word origin
ME, pl. childre (now dial. childer; children is double pl.) < OE cild, pl. cild, cildru < IE *gelt-, a swelling up < base *gel-, rounded (sense development: swelling — womb — fetus — offspring > Goth kilthei, womb, L globus, sphere
More idioms containing
child
poster child
COBUILD Collocations
child
adopt a child
adult child
bright child
disabled child
disadvantaged child
eldest child
innocent child
little child
missing child
poor child
raise a child
unborn child
Quotations
The child is father of the manWilliam WordsworthMy Heart Leaps Up
I love children. Especially when they cry - for then someone takes them awayNancy Mitford
The first half of our life is ruined by our parents and the second half by our childrenClarence Darrow
Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of life's longing for itself. They came through you but not from you And though they are with you yet they belong not to youKahlil GibranThe Prophet
Children are completely egoistic; they feel their needs intensely and strive ruthlessly to satisfy themSigmund FreudThe Interpretation of Dreams
Making terms with reality, with things as they are, is a full-time business for the childMilton R. SapirsteinParadoxes of Everyday Life
In other languages
child
British English: child /tʃaɪld/ NOUN
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult.
...when I was a child.
American English: child
Arabic: طِفْل
Brazilian Portuguese: criança
Chinese: 孩子
Croatian: dijete
Czech: dítě
Danish: barn
Dutch: kind
European Spanish: niño
Finnish: lapsi
French: enfant
German: Kind
Greek: παιδί
Italian: bambino
Japanese: 子供
Korean: 아이
Norwegian: barn
Polish: dziecko
European Portuguese: criança
Romanian: copil
Russian: ребенок
Latin American Spanish: niño
Swedish: barn
Thai: เด็ก
Turkish: çocuk
Ukrainian: дитина
Vietnamese: đứa trẻ
All related terms of 'child'
man-child
a boy ; a young male
adult child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
child abuse
physical, sexual, or emotional ill-treatment or neglect of a child, esp by those responsible for its welfare
child actor
an actor who is a child
child bride
a very young bride , esp when the groom is considerably older
child-care
having to do with the care of children, specif., of preschool children whose parents are employed
child death
Death is the permanent end of the life of a person or animal.
child-free
making a positive choice not to have children
child labor
the regular , full-time employment of children under a legally defined age in factories , stores , offices, etc.: in the U.S., the minimum legal age under federal law is 16 (in hazardous occupations , 18)
child lock
a lock , such as one on a door or window , designed to keep children safe
child seat
a type of child restraint consisting of a seat with safety features
child star
a child who attains celebrity status
child wife
a very young wife
feral child
a neglected child who engages in lawless or anti-social behaviour
inner child
Some psychologists refer to a person's childish feelings as his or her inner child .
love child
If journalists refer to someone as a love child , they mean that the person was born as a result of a love affair between two people who have never been married to each other.
Moon Child
someone who is born under the Cancer astrological sign
only child
a person who has no siblings
poor child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
wild child
Journalists sometimes use wild child to refer to a teenage girl who enjoys herself in an uncontrolled way, for example by going to a lot of parties, drinking lots of alcohol , or having relationships with much older people.
with child
pregnant
bright child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
child abuser
someone who abuses a child , esp someone convicted of this
child-bearing
the act or process of carrying and giving birth to a child
child benefit
In Britain , child benefit is an amount of money paid weekly by the state to families for each of their children.
child cruelty
cruelty directed against children
child custody
Law custody (sense 4 )
child genius
a person, esp a child, of unusual or marvellous talents
child health
A person's health is the condition of their body and the extent to which it is free from illness or is able to resist illness.
child labour
the full-time employment of children below a minimum age laid down by statute
child minder
a person who looks after children, esp those whose parents are working
child poverty
Poverty is the state of being extremely poor .
child prodigy
A child prodigy is a child with a very great talent .
child rearing
the activity of rearing children
child safety
Safety is the state of being safe from harm or danger .
child soldier
A soldier is a person who works in an army , especially a person who is not an officer.
child support
money paid for the care of one's minor child, esp. payments to a divorced spouse or a guardian under a decree of divorce
child welfare
social work and services aimed at insuring the welfare of children
Christ Child
→ the Christ Child
eldest child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
flower child
→ hippie
foster child
a child looked after temporarily or brought up by people other than its natural or adoptive parents
little child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
missing child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
natural child
an illegitimate child; one born of illicit intercourse
poster child
If someone is a poster child for a particular cause, characteristic , or activity , they are seen as a very good or typical example of it.
street child
Street children are homeless children who live outdoors in a city and live by begging or stealing .
unborn child
A child is a human being who is not yet an adult .
child abduction
the crime of removing a child from its rightful home
child battering
child abuse in the form of battering
Chinese translation of 'child'
child
(tʃaɪld)
Word forms:plchildren
n(c)
儿(兒)童 (értóng) (个(個), gè)
(= son, daughter) 孩子 (háizi) (个(個), gè)
⇒ Their children are all married.他们的孩子都结婚了。 (Tāmen de háizi dōu jiéhūn le.)
⇒ a father and his two teenage children一位父亲和他的两个十几岁的孩子 (yī wèi fùqīn hé tā de liǎng gè shí jǐ suì de háizi)
she's just had her second child她刚(剛)生了第二个(個)孩子 (tā gāng shēngle dì'èr gè háizi)
The approach has virtually ended cigarette sales to minors.
infant
young mums with infants in prams
babe
innocent as newborn babes
juvenile
The number of juveniles in the general population has fallen.
toddler
tot
The library was full of tots today.
wean (Scottish)
little one
brat
He's a spoilt brat.
bairn (Scottish, NorthernEngland)
suckling
nipper (informal)
I couldn't have been much more than a nipper when you last saw me.
chit
babe in arms
sprog (slang)
munchkin (informal, mainly US)
rug rat (slang)
nursling
littlie (Australian, informal)
ankle-biter (Australian, US, slang)
tacker (Australian, slang)
2 (noun)
Definition
a son or daughter
How many children do you have?
Synonyms
offspring
She was less anxious about her offspring than she had been.
issue
He died without issue in 1946.
descendant
They are descendants of the original settlers.
progeny
They set aside funds to ensure the welfare of their progeny.
related words
related adjectivefilial
related prefixpaedo-
Quotations
The child is father of the man [William Wordsworth – My Heart Leaps Up]I love children. Especially when they cry - for then someone takes them away [Nancy Mitford]The first half of our life is ruined by our parents and the second half by our children [Clarence Darrow]Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of life's longing for itself. They came through you but not from you And though they are with you yet they belong not to you [Kahlil Gibran – The Prophet]Children are completely egoistic; they feel their needs intensely and strive ruthlessly to satisfy them [Sigmund Freud – The Interpretation of Dreams]Making terms with reality, with things as they are, is a full-time business for the child [Milton R. Sapirstein – Paradoxes of Everyday Life]