misborn child
- noun
- /ˈmɪsbɔrn tʃaɪld/
- Archaic
:
niño maldito
- She feared her son would be labeled a misborn child due to the circumstances of his birth.
Examples
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Many believe that a misborn child brings bad luck.
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The villagers whispered about the fate of the misborn child.
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Legends often tell of a misborn child who rises to fulfill a prophecy.
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The village spoke of the misborn child with pity.
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The villagers believed that every misborn child was cursed from birth, bringing misfortune to their families.
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According to local folklore, a misborn child possesses unique abilities that can change their fate.
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Parents worried that their misborn child would never find acceptance in the community because of the stigma attached to their birth.
How Unlucky
Surface Forms
Morphology
misborn + child
The phrase is analyzable as mis- (badly/wrongly) + born + child, so a learner who recognizes the mis- prefix and knows 'born' and 'child' can infer a meaning like 'born under unfortunate or ominous circumstances.' However, 'misborn' is rare/archaic and the precise nuance (ominous vs simply unfortunate) and the productivity of mis- at B1 is uncertain, so the meaning is not fully predictable for all learners.
Etymology
Misborn child may come from old mis- meaning 'bad' and born meaning 'to be born'. People used it for a baby born at a bad time or with signs that something was wrong, like during a storm or with a strange mark. That's why calling someone a misborn child means the child was born under unlucky or worrying circumstances.