Children

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈt͡ʃɪldɹən/

Definitions

1. Young individuals who have not reached maturity and need guidance from adults
2. Offspring in the earlier phases of life who often depend on parental support and education
3. Individuals who are in the early stages of life, typically requiring care and education from adults

Etymology: "Children" is the plural of "child," but the plural ending is a relic of an older system. In Old English, the plural of "child" was "ċildru" or "ċildra," which were the nominative and accusative forms, and these carried the "-ren" ending that also appears in words like "brethren" and "oxen." That ending was a plural marker that survived in only a handful of nouns after most English plurals settled on "-s." Over the Middle English period the form shifted to "childre" and then "children," with the extra "-n" creeping in through the same pattern that gave us "eyen" and "shoon." Dialect speakers in parts of England kept the older "childer" for centuries, and it is still heard in some regional speech today, a living trace of the older pronunciation and spelling.

Synonyms: kids, youths, minors, offspring, juveniles

Antonyms: adults, parents, guardians