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bonus baby

American  

noun

  1. an athlete who is paid a substantial bonus to sign their first professional contract.


Etymology

Origin of bonus baby

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Cartaya signed for $2.5 million as a 16-year-old but Barbary noted that his spending habits weren’t like that of the typical bonus baby.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 17, 2022

Bet Mel Kiper missed this bonus baby on his big board.

From Seattle Times Apr. 30, 2021

William is a bonus baby — he signed for $2 million right out of high school — and now he finds himself way out of his league, both athletically and emotionally.

From New York Times Feb. 3, 2020

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Sandy Koufax didn’t spend an inning in the minor leagues, joining his home-town Brooklyn Dodgers as a bonus baby at the start of the 1955 season.

From The Guardian Oct. 7, 2015

They described Mr. Bond as “a kind of political bonus baby of great potential who never has quite fulfilled the promise as a national leader that many of his admirers once envisioned.”

From Washington Post Aug. 16, 2015

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