Definitions for child
tʃaɪldchild

Princeton's WordNet(4.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. child, kid, youngster, minor, shaver, nipper, small fry, tiddler, tike, tyke, fry, nestlingnoun

   a young person of either sex

   "she writes books for children"; "they're just kids"; "`tiddler' is a British term for youngster"

2. child, kidnoun

   a human offspring (son or daughter) of any age

   "they had three children"; "they were able to send their kids to college"

3. child, babynoun

   an immature childish person

   "he remained a child in practical matters as long as he lived"; "stop being a baby!"

4. childnoun

   a member of a clan or tribe

   "the children of Israel"

Wiktionary(3.25 / 4 votes)Rate this definition:

1. childnoun

   A daughter or son.

2. childnoun

   A person who is below the age of adulthood; a minor .

   Go easy on him: he is but a child.

3. childnoun

   A data item, process or object which has a subservient or derivative role relative to another data item, process or object.

   The child node then stores the actual data of the parent node.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. CHILDnoun

   in the plural Children.

   Etymology: cild , Sax.

   1. An infant, or very young person.

   In age, to wish for youth is full as vain,
   As for a youth to turn a child again. John Denham.

   We should no more be kinder to one child than to another, than we are tender of one eye more than of the other. Roger L'Estrange.

   The young lad must not be ventured abroad at eight or ten, for fear of what may happen to the tender child; though he then runs ten times less risque than at sixteen. John Locke.

   The stroak of death is nothing: children endure it, and the greatest cowards find it no pain. William Wake, Prep for Death.

   2. One in the line of filiation, opposed to the parent.

   Where children have been exposed, or taken away young, and afterwards have approached to their parents presence, the parents, though they have not known them, have had a secret joy, or other alteration thereupon. Francis Bacon, Nat. Hist. №. 239.

   I shall see
   The winged vengeance overtake such children. William Shakespeare, K. L.

   So unexhausted her perfections were,
   That for more children, she had more to spare. Dryden.

   He in a fruitful wife’s embraces old,
   A long increase of children’s children told. Joseph Addison, Ovid’s Met.

   3. In the language of Scripture.One weak in knowledge. Isa. x.
   19. 1 Cor. xiii. 11.

   1 John, ii. 13.

   Matt. xvii. 3, 4.

   How is he numbered among the children of God, and his lot is among the saints! Wisdom, v. 5.

   Ye are all the children of God, by faith in Jesus Christ. Gal. iii. 26. Augustin Calmet.

   4. A girl child.

   Mercy on’s, a bearne! a very pretty bearne!
   A boy, or child, I wonder! William Shakespeare, Winter’s Tale.

   5. Any thing, the product or effect of another.

   Macduff, this noble passion,
   Child of integrity, hath from my soul
   Wip’d the black scruples. William Shakespeare, Macbeth.

   6. To be with Child. To be pregnant.

   If it must stand still, let wives with child,
   Pray that their burthen may not fall this day,
   Lest that their hopes prodigiously be crost. William Shakespeare, K. John.

2. To Childverb

   To bring children.

   Etymology: from the noun.

   The spring, the summer,
   The childing autumn, angry winter change
   Their wonted liveries. William Shakespeare, Midsummer Night Dream.

   As to childing women, young vigorous people, after irregularities of diet, in such it begins with hæmorrhages. Arbuthnot.

Webster Dictionary(3.00 / 4 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Childnoun

   a son or a daughter; a male or female descendant, in the first degree; the immediate progeny of human parents; -- in law, legitimate offspring. Used also of animals and plants

2. Childnoun

   a descendant, however remote; -- used esp. in the plural; as, the children of Israel; the children of Edom

3. Childnoun

   one who, by character of practice, shows signs of relationship to, or of the influence of, another; one closely connected with a place, occupation, character, etc.; as, a child of God; a child of the devil; a child of disobedience; a child of toil; a child of the people

4. Childnoun

   a noble youth. See Childe

5. Childnoun

   a young person of either sex. esp. one between infancy and youth; hence, one who exhibits the characteristics of a very young person, as innocence, obedience, trustfulness, limited understanding, etc

6. Childnoun

   a female infant

7. Childverb

   to give birth; to produce young

8. Etymology: [AS. cild, pl. cildru; cf. Goth. kilei womb, in-kil with child.]

Freebase(4.33 / 6 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Child

   Biologically, a child is a human between the stages of birth and puberty. Some biological definitions of child include the fetus, as being an unborn child. The legal definition of child generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger than the age of majority. Child may also describe a relationship with a parent or, metaphorically, an authority figure, or signify group membership in a clan, tribe, or religion; it can also signify being strongly affected by a specific time, place, or circumstance, as in "a child of nature" or "a child of the Sixties".

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(3.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Child

   chīld, n. an infant or very young person: (Shak.) a female infant: one intimately related to one older: expressing origin or relation, e.g. child of the East, child of shame, child of God, &c.: a disciple: a youth of gentle birth, esp. in ballads, &c.—sometimes Childe and Chylde: (pl.) offspring: descendants: inhabitants:—pl. Chil′dren.—ns. Child′-bear′ing, the act of bringing forth children; Child′bed, the state of a woman brought to bed with child; Child′birth, the giving birth to a child: parturition; Child′-crow′ing, a nervous affection with spasm of the muscles closing the glottis.—adj. Child′ed (Shak.), possessed of a child.—n. Child′hood, state of being a child: the time of one's being a child.—adjs. Child′ing (Shak.), fruitful, teeming; Child′ish, of or like a child: silly: trifling.—adv. Child′ishly.—ns. Child′ishness, Child′ness, what is natural to a child: puerility.—adjs. Child′less, without children; Child′-like, like a child: becoming a child: docile: innocent.—n. Child′-wife, a very young wife.—Child's play, something very easy to do: something slight.—From or Of a Child, since the days of childhood.—Second childhood, the childishness of old age.—With child, pregnant, e.g. Get with child, Be or Go with child. [A.S. cild, pl. cild, later cildru, -ra. The Ger. equivalent word is kind.]

U.S. National Library of Medicine(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Child

   A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. child

   A person of a specific age defined in legislation.

   A child is entitled to their innocence in life and develop and grow at a moderate rate.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on March 14, 2020  

Suggested Resources(3.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. child

   The child symbol -- In this Symbols.com article you will learn about the meaning of the child symbol and its characteristic.

Matched Categories

1. • Descendant
   • Person

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'child' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #345

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'child' in Written Corpus Frequency: #650

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'child' in Nouns Frequency: #8

How to pronounce child?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say child in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of child in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of child in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of child in a Sentence

1. Monica Beaver:

   If you have an issue with somebody's children, talk to the parent. Not the child. We tried to get our row and the row behind us to cheer on and get her to keep cheering. It took a little bit though, but there were a bunch of people upset at that situation, so we tried to fix it in a positive manner.

2. Marybeth Antier:

   I saw the building where we live already ablaze, my child was inside but I could not enter anymore.

3. Glenn Youngkin:

   This bill is very clear. Any authority, whether it's a local school board or a local board of supervisors or, by the way, the state government that wants to mandate masks, then parents will have the ability to opt out if they think that's the best thing for their child.

4. Heraclitus:

   Man is most nearly himself when he achieves the seriousness of a child at play.

5. Pat Toomey:

   Any educator who sexually abuses a child should feel the full force of the law and never be allowed to enter a classroom again, i have repeatedly encouraged the Department of Education to urgently investigate this problem and use its authority to enforce existing law.

Popularity rank by frequency of use