baby

1 of 3

noun

ba·​by ˈbā-bē How to pronounce baby (audio)
plural babies
1
a(1)
: an extremely young child
especially : infant
She just had a baby.
I hear the baby crying.
sometimes used of an adult daughter or son to express parental nostalgia or affection
Our baby has gone off to college.
You'll always be my baby.
(2)
: an extremely young animal
b
: the youngest of a group
He is the baby of the family.
2
a
: one that is like a baby (as in behavior)
When it comes to getting shots, I'm a real baby.
b
: something that is one's special responsibility, achievement, or interest
The project was his baby.
3
slang
a
: girl, woman
often used in address
b
: boy, man
often used in address
Hey baby, nice car!
c
used as a term of endearment
Hey baby. How was your day?
4
: person, thing
is one tough baby
babyhood noun
babyish adjective

baby

2 of 3

adjective

1
: of, relating to, or being an extremely young child
a baby bonnet
2
: much smaller than the usual
baby carrots
a baby grand piano
Take baby steps.

baby

3 of 3

verb

babied; babying

transitive verb

1
: to tend to indulge with often excessive or inappropriate care and solicitude
babying their only child
2
: to use or treat with care
babying a sore knee
Choose the Right Synonym for baby

indulge, pamper, humor, spoil, baby, mollycoddle mean to show undue favor to a person's desires and feelings.

indulge implies excessive compliance and weakness in gratifying another's or one's own desires.

indulged myself with food at the slightest excuse

pamper implies inordinate gratification of desire for luxury and comfort with consequent enervating effect.

pampered by the amenities of modern living

humor stresses a yielding to a person's moods or whims.

humored him by letting him tell the story

spoil stresses the injurious effects on character by indulging or pampering.

foolish parents spoil their children

baby suggests excessive care, attention, or solicitude.

babying students by grading too easily

mollycoddle suggests an excessive degree of care and attention to another's health or welfare.

refused to mollycoddle her malingering son

Examples of baby in a Sentence

Noun I hear the baby crying. The baby is just learning to crawl. a bird and its babies My sister is the baby of the family. “Only 32? Oh, you're just a baby!” When it comes to getting shots, I'm a real baby. Don't be such a baby—you'll get your turn. Nothing's gone right since my baby went away. Verb That boy will never learn to stand up for himself if you don't stop babying him. He was babying his injured foot.
Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Noun
The Bachelorette alum, 35, who competed on JoJo Fletcher's season of the franchise and season 6 of Bachelor in Paradise, is expecting his first baby with wife Ellie White. Hannah Sacks, People.com, 4 Nov. 2024 The birth of a pygmy hippo baby is a reason to celebrate considering the dwindling population. Amanda Kooser, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024
Verb
The sensitive child of the bunch doesn’t need to be babied. Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 28 Nov. 2023 Plus, judging by Dustin May, Walker Buehler and many others, babying a pitcher doesn’t seem too effective. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2023 See all Example Sentences for baby 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from babe

Adjective

attributive use of baby entry 1

Verb

verbal derivative of baby entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Adjective

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1744, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of baby was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near baby

Cite this Entry

“Baby.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/baby. Accessed 14 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

baby

1 of 3 noun
ba·​by ˈbā-bē How to pronounce baby (audio)
plural babies
1
a
: a very young child
especially : infant
b
: a very young animal
2
: the youngest of a group
3
: a childish person
babyhood noun
babyish adjective

baby

2 of 3 adjective
1
: being or relating to a baby
a baby deer
my baby sister
baby clothes
2
: much smaller than usual
a baby grand piano
baby carrots

baby

3 of 3 verb
babied; babying
1
: to use or treat as a baby : pet
2
: to operate or treat with care
babied the car

Medical Definition

baby

noun
ba·​by ˈbā-bē How to pronounce baby (audio)
plural babies
1
: an extremely young child
especially : infant
2
: an extremely young animal
baby adjective
babyhood noun
babyish adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on baby

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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