infant

American  

[in-fuhnt] / ˈɪn fənt /

noun

• infants
  plural

1. a child during the earliest period of their life, especially before they can walk; baby.

2. Law. a person who is not of full age, especially one who has not reached the age of 18 years; a minor.

3. a beginner, as in experience or learning; novice.

   The new candidate is a political infant.

4. anything in the first stage of existence or progress.

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adjective

1. of or relating to infants or infancy.

   infant years.

2. being in infancy.

   an infant king.

3. being in the earliest stage.

   an infant industry.

4. of or relating to the legal state of infancy; minor.

infant British  

/ ˈɪnfənt /

noun

1. a child at the earliest stage of its life; baby

2. law another word for minor

3. a young schoolchild, usually under the age of seven

4. a person who is beginning or inexperienced in an activity

5. (modifier)

   1. of or relating to young children or infancy

   2. designed or intended for young children

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adjective

1. in an early stage of development; nascent

   an infant science or industry

2. law of or relating to the legal status of infancy

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• infanthood
  noun
• infantlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• infants
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of infant

First recorded in 1350–1400; from Latin infant- (stem of infāns ) “small child,” literally, “one unable to speak,” equivalent to in- in- ³ + -fāns, present participle of fārī “to speak”; replacing Middle English enfaunt, from Anglo-French, from Latin, as above

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Explanation

An infant is a baby. When you were an infant, you weren't able to walk, talk, or feed yourself (but you had a pretty mean burp). Infant is most often used for a very young human, but you can also use it to talk about animal babies. People are considered infants from the moment of birth until approximately one year old, an age when many babies are starting to walk and talk. At this point, they're commonly called toddlers instead of infants. The Latin root is infantem, which as a noun means "babe in arms," and as an adjective "unable to speak."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

infant infants

These discoveries bring the number of individuals in that particular burial area to five, consisting of four adults and one infant.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

“Look at this nice mom taking care of an infant; surely she’s a nice lady who would never defraud anyone or even tell a single, small lie,” the image desperately wants to tell us.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

I think we could have been happy, my husband and infant daughter and I, living in that apartment.

From Slate ● Oct. 28, 2026

He had walked from the infant school to the junior school hall to pay a shilling for his school dinner.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

I felt cold all over, as though I was the newborn infant a second time, cast aside and forgotten.

From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson

The infants who put titles on Netflix shows have something to answer for.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

He is in the middle of a public spat with Pennsylvania officials, including Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, after the state health department reported two measles-associated deaths involving infants.

From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026

Officials described them to the BBC as infants, although some local reports suggest they are between one and two years old.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

On my boat, a packed, three-deck pleasure cruise otherwise populated by swimsuit-clad tourists and screaming infants, the story was much the same.

From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026

Musical ability is indeed found in infants, who at only a few months old can manipulate an object in response to hearing certain songs.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

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Related Words

• child
• kid
• newborn
• toddler

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