woman child
- noun
- /ˈwʊmən tʃaɪld/
- Informal
:
mujer-niña
- The novel depicts her as a woman child who struggles to cope with adult responsibilities.
Examples
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Despite her age, she retained a woman child outlook that charmed everyone around her.
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Her friends often referred to her as a woman child because of her playful imagination.
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She is a true woman child at heart.
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The woman child laughed joyfully at the silly joke.
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Despite being a successful professional, she often acted like a woman child, bringing joy and laughter to her friends.
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Her woman child spirit shone through whenever she joined in the games at the park with the children.
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Everyone loved her for being a woman child, as she blended youthful enthusiasm with her mature perspective.
Synonyms
∞
2.8
A person who behaves in a silly or not grown-up way
How Childlike
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'woman' (an adult female) with 'child' (childlike person), yielding an adult woman who behaves or feels childlike; this compositional pattern is transparent and similar to compounds like 'man-child'. While punctuation or register (e.g., hyphenation) may vary, a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
Woman child may come from the clear image of a grown woman who still keeps the playful smile and simple trust of a child. That's why the term means 'an adult woman who acts like a child'.