baby step

noun

: a very small step or advance in progress

These companies can create products that take a real leap forward, rather than the traditional baby steps that larger companies with greater commitments must make.

—Home Theater

baby-step

ˈbā-bē-ˌstep 

verb, transitive + intransitive

baby-stepped; baby-stepping

… after the 2-1 victory that baby-stepped the sixth-place Rangers within four points of the first-place Devils …

—Larry Brooks

"This is murder," John Chaney had said in that ever-raspy voice as he baby-stepped toward the court Thursday night. "My feet are killing me."

—Tom Archdeacon

Examples of baby step in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Come March, those baby steps will lead Masters back to the world stage, where she’s flourished for more than a decade as one of the events’ top stars. —Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 9 Jan. 2026

In order to knock out leftover pockets of clutter like paperwork or kids’ items, Tanaka says that baby steps such as setting a timer or schedule a day for projects like these keeps momentum high and effort low. —Quincy Bulin, Southern Living, 5 Jan. 2026

The world's largest online streamer and feared bogeyman (along with YouTube) of traditional media companies is taking yet another baby step into sports. —Alex Sherman,contessa Brewer, CNBC, 27 Nov. 2025

Olivia Dean’s baby steps have turned into a sprint. —Michael Saponara, Billboard, 14 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1825, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for baby step

• multistep
• overstep
• bicep
• doorstep
• footstep
• instep
• lockstep
• misstep
• sidestep
• cep
• hep
• pep