kid

noun

\ ˈkid

Definition of kid

(Entry 1 of 4)

1 : a young person kids in high school especially : child a married couple with two kids —often used as a generalized reference to one especially younger or less experienced the kid on the pro golf tour you poor kid

2a : a young goat

b : a young individual of various animals related to the goat

3a : the flesh, fur, or skin of a young goat

b : something (such as leather) made of the fur or skin of a young goat gloves made of kid

kid

adjective

Definition of kid (Entry 2 of 4)

: younger my kid brother his kid sister

kid

verb (1)

kidded; kidding

Definition of kid (Entry 3 of 4)

transitive verb

1a : to deceive (someone) as a joke : to say untrue things to (someone) in a playful or joking way It's the truth; I wouldn't kid you. You've got to be kidding me. I kid you not.

b : to fail to admit the truth to (someone) They're kidding themselves if they think they can win.

2 : to gently criticize or tease (someone) in a friendly or good-humored way We kidded her about her old car.

intransitive verb

: to engage in good-humored fooling or horseplay He was just kidding with you. —often used with around She enjoys kidding around with her friends.

kid

verb (2)

kidded; kidding

Definition of kid (Entry 4 of 4)

intransitive verb

: to bring forth young —used of a goat or an antelope

Other Words from kid Synonyms & Antonyms Is the word kid slang? More Example Sentences Learn More about kid

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Other Words from kid

Noun

kiddish \ ˈki-dish

\ adjective

Verb (1)

kidder noun

kiddingly \ ˈki-diŋ-lē

\ adverb

Synonyms & Antonyms for kid

Synonyms: Noun

bairn
[chiefly Scottish],
bambino,
bud,
chap
[Southern & Midland],
chick,
child,
cub,
juvenile,
kiddie
(also kiddy),
kiddo,
moppet,
sprat,
sprout,
squirt,
whelp,
youngling,
youngster,
youth

Antonyms: Noun

adult,
grown-up

Is the word kid slang?

Noun

Some people worry that kid, when used of a child rather than a juvenile goat, is either slang or too colloquial to merit acceptance in standard English.

The fact is that we have been using kid to refer to a child that is human, rather than goatish, for more than three hundred years now. The Oxford English Dictionary notes that although this word was considered “low slang” when it first began being used, it had entered “familiar speech” by the 19th century.

In contemporary English, kid is neither slang nor improper. It is, however, most definitely informal, so those writing professionally or in a formal register might prefer to use child.

Examples of kid in a Sentence

Noun She has to leave early and pick up her kids at school. He has a wife and two kids. I wish I could do something to help that poor kid.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Parents can also show their child how to follow stocks' prices on trading platforms and kid-friendly apps, such as Acorns and Greenlight. — Jazmin Goodwin, CNN, "How to get your kids started investing early," 19 Feb. 2021 The kid-friendly version of Obama’s memoir features a new foreword and three photo inserts, according to Obama's website. — Nicole Saunders, NBC News, "Michelle Obama memoir 'Becoming' gets two new editions," 18 Feb. 2021 Choose from a variety of family feast value meals, with both kid-friendly and breakfast options, to suit your celebration. — Amanda Garrity, Good Housekeeping, "21 Restaurants Open on Easter Sunday 2021 for Takeout and To-Go Meals," 18 Feb. 2021 The company's latest app incorporates coding elements, augmented reality, and a selection of kid-friendly pop tunes. — Adrienne So, Wired, "New From Lego: AR Llamas That Dance to Katy Perry," 16 Feb. 2021 The kits have themes such as dinosaurs, music, favorite characters and other kid-friendly themes. — cleveland, "Tandem bike inspires Avon Lake father, daughter to publish children’s book: Short Takes on Avon, Avon Lake and North Ridgeville," 13 Feb. 2021 The series is comprised of simple, kid-friendly lessons that will touch on family, nature and geography. — Danielle Harling, House Beautiful, "IKEA's New Swedish Language Lessons Couldn't Have Come at a Better Time," 13 Feb. 2021 When Anytime Saturday Learn a new recipe for Mardi Gras in a kid-friendly cooking class from BLVD Kitchen, a cooking school in Los Angeles. — New York Times, "Learn About Lincoln and Attend a Symposium on the Power of Fashion," 13 Feb. 2021 Enjoy tea, kid-friendly snacks (cupcakes, watermelon soda), and a drawing class. — Kara Baskin, BostonGlobe.com, "Where to keep kids busy during February vacation," 12 Feb. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective After years of playing kid parts – and one friendly neighborhood Spider-Man – Tom Holland has been strategic about when to make the step into becoming an adult on screen. — Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, "Tom Holland on his adult 'Cherry' role, what he's taking from 'Spider-Man: No Way Home'," 24 Feb. 2021 And people the world over have fallen for a kid way, way ahead of his time. — Kevin Sherrington, Dallas News, "Damian Lillard has been Oscar-worthy, but Luka Doncic is the people’s choice — and that’s why he’s starting the All-Star Game," 19 Feb. 2021 But Slagle wonders if his fellow comics will treat Biden with kid gloves. — Neal Justin, Star Tribune, "How political comedy will adjust to a Biden administration," 2 Feb. 2021 Seeing my kid act like this sometimes may give me a few (okay, like 20) extra gray hairs, but that’s nothing a good weave or braids can’t cover up. — Washington Post, "My daughter’s tween ’tude is a welcome reminder that she’s so much more than her disability," 21 Dec. 2020 But pretty much everyone in the Big Ten is a kid brother to the Buckeyes. — Shannon Ryan, chicagotribune.com, "Column: What’s on the line when Northwestern faces Ohio State in the Big Ten championship game? Respect — and maybe a good steakhouse meal.," 17 Dec. 2020 Some of the resulting works are now part of a small but lively exhibition of kid art, dating back to 1900, that will remain on view at the museum, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, until mid-January. — Bruce Handy, The New Yorker, "Can Kid Art Be Real Art?," 14 Dec. 2020 One way to look at this little 20-volt saw is that it’s the kid brother to the 60-volt Craftsman above. — Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, "The Best Battery-Powered Chainsaws," 9 Dec. 2020 The Chicago native who forged a lifetime partnership with his kid brother, Al, died Monday from illness while in the arms of his wife, Dolores. — Tony Kennedy, Star Tribune, "Ron Lindner, who founded a family fishing empire, dies at 86," 1 Dec. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Murphy, who oversaw the visitors’ clubhouse for part of Lasorda’s career and remembers him as a regular in North Beach, befriended Frank Sinatra and would kid Lasorda about Sinatra’s allegiance. — John Shea, SFChronicle.com, "Tommy Lasorda, ‘lovable villain’ in Giants-Dodgers rivalry, dies at 93," 8 Jan. 2021 Don’t kid yourself that this contempt travels only in one direction, up the chain of command. — Timothy Noah, The New Republic, "Down With Slack," 4 Dec. 2020 As for the Vikings, don't kid yourself, Kirk Cousins fans. — Mark Craig, Star Tribune, "Vikings primed to join crowded race for No. 1 pick," 23 Oct. 2020 Do not kid yourself, ladies and gentlemen, this is literally and figuratively the ultimate game of political football. — Mike Bianchi, orlandosentinel.com, "Brace yourself: College football fans could decide whether President Trump gets re-elected | Commentary," 2 Sep. 2020 Having said that, anyone who believes that future Republican leaders can simply roll the clock back to the spring of 2015, with regard to foreign policy as well as much else, is kidding himself. — Colin Dueck, National Review, "What Is Conservative American Nationalism?," 21 Oct. 2019 All kidding aside, to receive the N95 designation, masks must adhere to the standard regulated by the FDA. — Michael Simon, PCWorld, "Razer will make a million masks to help fight coronavirus," 19 Mar. 2020 People who claim to sure how the journey will go are kidding themselves. — Andrew C. Mccarthy, National Review, "Impeachment Is Unpredictable," 2 Nov. 2019 If neither hits a milestone homer the first week on the road, each could take advantage of the Giants’ new bandbox (kidding). — John Shea, SFChronicle.com, "Giants Splash: 6 early observations from camp on key roster questions," 4 Mar. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Murphy, who oversaw the visitors’ clubhouse for part of Lasorda’s career and remembers him as a regular in North Beach, befriended Frank Sinatra and would kid Lasorda about Sinatra’s allegiance. — John Shea, SFChronicle.com, "Tommy Lasorda, ‘lovable villain’ in Giants-Dodgers rivalry, dies at 93," 8 Jan. 2021 Don’t kid yourself that this contempt travels only in one direction, up the chain of command. — Timothy Noah, The New Republic, "Down With Slack," 4 Dec. 2020 As for the Vikings, don't kid yourself, Kirk Cousins fans. — Mark Craig, Star Tribune, "Vikings primed to join crowded race for No. 1 pick," 23 Oct. 2020 Do not kid yourself, ladies and gentlemen, this is literally and figuratively the ultimate game of political football. — Mike Bianchi, orlandosentinel.com, "Brace yourself: College football fans could decide whether President Trump gets re-elected | Commentary," 2 Sep. 2020 Just kidding, but my love for these boots (and boots in general) is no joke. — Georgina Kim, Glamour, "These Celebrity Boot Looks Are So Good I Want to Scream—Then Shop," 26 Nov. 2019 All kidding aside, to receive the N95 designation, masks must adhere to the standard regulated by the FDA. — Michael Simon, PCWorld, "Razer will make a million masks to help fight coronavirus," 19 Mar. 2020 According to police, a customer had overheard two employees who were kidding around. — Emily Sweeney, BostonGlobe.com, "An owl is saved, and a priest gets hacked," 19 Feb. 2020 But today’s digital invitations do look just like the real thing, but without the pileup in someone’s recycling bin. Give the birthday kid a sense of control and creativity by letting her help design the invitation. — Jamie Kiffel-alcheh, National Geographic, "How to throw an (almost) zero-waste birthday party," 26 Feb. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'kid.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.