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Is the word kid slang?
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
Chris Johnston, New York Times, 18 June 2025
My kids officially gained a new best friend, and he's gained a whole new life.
—Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 June 2025
Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 25 May 2025
Clearly, the audition worked, as Weiss appeared as the kid character Elvis three times, alongside fellow season 2 Playhouse Gang member Natasha Lyonne.
—Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 17 Apr. 2025
Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 18 June 2025
Surely this step won’t be controversial at all… (kidding).
—Neil Paine, New York Times, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for kid
Cite this Entry
“Kid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kid. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
kid
2 of 2 verb
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