fledgling

C2+ Topic:Animals

US /ˈflɛdʒlɪŋ/ UK /ˈfledʒlɪŋ/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a young bird newly able to fly, or an inexperienced beginner

The fledgling company struggled in its first year.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a young bird newly able to... beginner novice neophyte tyro newcomer apprentice nestling

Opposites

veteran expert master adult

Word family

Forms fledgelings

Related forms fledge fledged unfledged

Etymology

From fledge ('to acquire feathers for flight', from Old English -flycge, akin to fleogan 'to fly') + the diminutive suffix -ling.

-flycge Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Animals Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# fledgling

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈflɛdʒlɪŋ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈfledʒlɪŋ/

## Meanings
1. a young bird newly able to fly, or an inexperienced beginner

## Examples
- The fledgling company struggled in its first year.

## Synonyms
- beginner
- novice
- neophyte
- tyro
- newcomer
- apprentice
- nestling

## Antonyms
- veteran
- expert
- master
- adult

## Related Forms
- fledge
- fledged
- unfledged

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: -flycge

## Etymology
From fledge ('to acquire feathers for flight', from Old English -flycge, akin to fleogan 'to fly') + the diminutive suffix -ling.

## AI Etymology
Fledgling comes from fledge ('to acquire feathers for flight', from Old English -flycge, akin to fleogan 'to fly') + the diminutive suffix -ling. Morphologically, the form is compositional, with the named elements combining to produce the modern spelling and sense. In present use, it is used as a noun and adjective meaning "a young bird newly able to fly, or an inexperienced beginner", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes related forms such as fledge, fledged, and unfledged, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Old English -flycge, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance. Its semantic neighborhood is marked by beginner, novice, neophyte, and tyro on one side and contrasts such as veteran, expert, and master on the other, locating the modern specialization without adding a new origin story.

## Topics
- Animals
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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