war baby
- noun
- /wɔr ˈbeɪbi/
- The post-war baby boom generation does have higher rates of cancer at younger ages than the previous generation, the National Cancer Institute reported.
- war baby born
Examples
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It's like taking in a war baby.
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Being a war baby in 1942, I can relate to the photo collection as having been a part of my life.
Blog text (34) -
One of those baby books, but for a war baby in Vietnam.
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She was just a normal, post-war baby in California.
Blog text (32) -
Both motherless, both war babies, making their way in the world by themselves." (RB. 166).
Academic text (2005) -
I was born a war baby during the turmoil of World War II, when my parents met amidst the chaos.
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As a war baby, she often shared stories of how her early life was shaped by the conflict around her.
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Each war baby has a unique story, reflecting the challenging circumstances of their birth during wartime.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning ‘a child conceived or born during a war’ is directly and compositionally derived from the constituents 'war' (armed conflict) + 'baby' (very young child). This noun–noun compound follows a transparent, cross-linguistic pattern and would be immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both words, despite possible additional sociocultural nuances.
Etymology
War baby comes from the clear image of a baby born during a war, often when soldiers are around or when relationships form between troops and local people. So, it now means a child 'born during a war' or one whose birth came from wartime relationships or events.