youngling C2+ Topic:People & Society US /ˈjʌŋ.lɪŋ/ UK /ˈjʌŋ.lɪŋ/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a young person, animal, or plant (archaic or literary) The doe kept her younglings hidden in the tall grass. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a young person, animal, or... youngsterjuvenilechildyouthwhelpfledgling ↔ Opposites elderadult Word family Related forms youngyoungsteryouth Etymology AI details From Old English ġeongling ('youth'), from ġeong ('young') + -ling (diminutive suffix). ġeong Old English *jungaz Proto-Germanic View etymology graph -> Topics People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives Register & Style External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # youngling **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈjʌŋ.lɪŋ/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈjʌŋ.lɪŋ/ ## Meanings 1. a young person, animal, or plant (archaic or literary) ## Examples - The doe kept her younglings hidden in the tall grass. ## Synonyms - youngster - juvenile - child - youth - whelp - fledgling ## Antonyms - elder - adult ## Related Forms - young - youngster - youth ## Roots and Affixes - Root: ġeong - Root: *jungaz ## Etymology From Old English ġeongling ('youth'), from ġeong ('young') + -ling (diminutive suffix). ## AI Etymology Youngling comes from Old English ġeongling ('youth'), from ġeong ('young') + -ling (diminutive suffix). In current use it is a noun meaning "a young person, animal, or plant (archaic or literary)". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The surface form is compositional: its joined elements remain visible in the modern word. A diminutive element is part of the history, marking a smaller or derived form. The historical chain includes Old English ġeong and Proto-Germanic *jungaz. Related English forms include young, youngster, and youth. The word's history is thus visible in its construction: the components remain interpretable even after the whole expression has settled into a conventional English meaning. ## Topics - People & Society - Word Formation & Derivatives - Register & Style markdown