plural men-children ˈmen-ˌchil-drən How to pronounce man-child (audio)
-dərn
1
: a male child : son
… it came to her what a glory it would be to be the mother of a man-child like this.Jack London
2
: a man who has the qualities of a child : a childlike man
… a largely likable tale about a 38-year-old man-child trying finally to grow up.Manohla Dargis

Examples of man-child in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Which brings us to the most galling mystery of the season: How on earth does this preening man-child get engaged? Laura Bradley, Vulture, 9 Aug. 2024 Efron’s self-esteem is at rock bottom, and his hard-working assistant Zara (Joey King) has had enough of his mood swings and outlandish man-child requests. Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 5 Sep. 2024 The truth is more complicated, but a stunted man-child searching for Dad’s approval makes Williams relatable. Peter Debruge, Variety, 2 Sep. 2024 Perhaps the biggest development is that Daemon abandons the idea of making a play for the Iron Throne himself, a reversal of where the story seemed to be heading this season for the bratty man-child. Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 5 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for man-child 

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of man-child was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near man-child

Cite this Entry

“Man-child.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/man-child. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.

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