adoptee

noun

adopt·​ee ə-ˌdäp-ˈtē 

: one who is adopted

Examples of adoptee in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

She was born in New York, which has allowed adoptees to access their original birth certificate since 2020. — Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 7 Aug. 2026

Special rules apply to recent adoptees and children who were born and died during the same tax year. — Nancy Ashburn, Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Aug. 2026

American adoptee John Campitelli was 28 years old when he was reunited with his Italian birth mother. — Bill Whitaker, CBS News, 12 July 2026

The Associated Press profiled the woman in 2024 as part of a story about how many international adoptees were left without citizenship because their American adoptive parents failed to naturalize them. — Claire Galofaro, Los Angeles Times, 15 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

adopt + -ee entry 1

First Known Use

1804, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for adoptee

• agree
• allee
• banshee
• beastly
• bibi
• bowsprit
• carefree
• cerci
• chablis
• cowpea
• crappie
• crappy

Legal Definition

adoptee

noun

adopt·​ee ə-ˌdäp-ˈtē 

: a person who is adopted