kid
noun
a child or young person.
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kid
1 American
[kid]
/ kɪd /
noun
-
kids
plural
-
Informal. a child or young person.
-
(used as a familiar form of address.)
-
a young goat.
-
leather made from the skin of a kid or goat, used in making shoes and gloves.
-
a glove made from this leather.
verb (used with or without object)
kidded,
kidding
kid
2
American
[kid]
/ kɪd /
Kid
3
American
[kid]
/ kɪd /
noun
kid
1
British
/ kɪd /
noun
-
the young of a goat or of a related animal, such as an antelope
-
soft smooth leather made from the hide of a kid
-
informal
-
a young person; child
-
(modifier) younger or being still a child
kid brother
kid sister
-
-
dialect my younger brother or sister
verb
kid
2
British
/ kɪd /
verb
-
(tr) to tease or deceive for fun
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(intr) to behave or speak deceptively for fun
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(tr) to delude or fool (oneself) into believing (something)
don't kid yourself that no-one else knows
Kid
3
British
/ kɪd /
noun
kid
4
British
/ kɪd /
noun
kid
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of kid1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English kide, from Old Norse kith
Origin of kid2
First recorded in 1805–15; perhaps special use of kid 1
Explanation
If a farmer offers to introduce you to her kid, you might not know if she means her child or her baby goat. A kid is a child, informally, and it's also a young goat. Sometimes the word kid means a kind of soft leather made from goat skin. When kid is used as a verb, it means to tease or jokingly deceive someone — to kid them. Some sticklers for formality object to using kid to mean "child," but that meaning has been around since the 1590s. The "teasing" definition of kid comes from the sense of "treat like a child."
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:
Dalibor described changing countries as "tough on a kid"
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
In high school, he was a choir kid, and though he can “listen to just about anything,” he prefers “west coast rap.”
From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026
That kid is striking out with a bat and assorted gear that cost more than a Cape Cod weekend.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
They try to get in front of every kid.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
“It did not compute in my kid brain.”
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
What’s paying full price for an Ugly Kid Joe CD you never wanted compared to all that?
From Salon ● Aug. 21, 2026
Kid Rock offered $20 tickets on tour in 2013.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
The single "Real Gone Kid" became their first top 10 single in the UK Singles Chart while Dignity is one of their most popular songs.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
Strains of “Sweet Home Alabama” greet you—first the original, then, immediately afterward, the Kid Rock version—as you emerge onto a White House lawn transformed for the occasion.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
The teachers shake each other’s hands and Hair cut Kid, Calculus Girl, and I look at each other with shocked faces.
From "The House That Lou Built" by Mae Respicio
"It was crazy. To think of how you would just flee your home, not able to take anything with you and try and protect you and your kids."
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
“I have complete trepidation about going under again. I have seven kids and I couldn’t afford that,” he told The Wall Street Journal in 2006.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
The kids who lose these contests aren’t chosen at random.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
It’s how he met his “Latina Butterfly,” he tells the kids.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
I catch bits and pieces of conversation from parents who came so their kids will one day be able to vote without fear.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
This claim of passivity kidded nobody except maybe himself.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2025
His father was a boilermaker on the Lake Erie Railroad and Lujack was often kidded that he should have gone to Purdue, not Notre Dame.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2023
On a flight to Chicago, Devers kidded Bello he would hit two homers on Friday.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 15, 2023
I’m seeing a therapist and already feeling better, but I’m kind of shook by how easily I kidded myself that I was fine.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 30, 2022
They kidded him, calling him Admiral, but for once Leo accepted the title.
From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan
I’m kidding: Even under normal circumstances, giving private companies this much power is likely to incentivize inventing enemies to fight or drive unnecessary spending.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
These statistics suggest that some analysts may be kidding themselves — and us — when they argue that the Nasdaq composite’s recent drop is healthy — nothing more than a normal bull-market rotation between sectors.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026
When harangued by CNBC’s Joe Kernan to “reject” the winners, Jeffries replied, “Donald Trump is the president right now. Are you kidding me?”
From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026
The Lakers embattled basketball boss smartly acquired renowned shooter Kennard from the Atlanta Hawks in early February for Gabe Vincent and a second-round draft pick and … are you kidding me?
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 19, 2026
“What is there to say? You’re kidding, right?”
From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
