bairn
Bairn (noun) means a child, especially in Scottish and northern English usage. Example: “She was carrying her youngest bairn on her hip.”
How to use bairn
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA Scots and northern-English word for a child or baby.
Regional and informal — common in Scotland and North East England, rare elsewhere.
Word forms
bairned past tense, bairns plural, bairns singular
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
She was carrying her youngest _____ on her hip.
Etymology
From Scots bairn, from Old English bearn ("child"), a doublet of barn (the storage building, from an unrelated sense of "storing grain").
Rhymes for bairn
See all rhymes for bairn →Frequently asked questions
What does “bairn” mean?
The word “bairn” means a child, especially in Scottish and northern English usage. In plain terms, a Scots and northern-English word for a child or baby.
How do you pronounce “bairn”?
“Bairn” is pronounced beh-uhrn (/bɛərn/ in IPA).
How do you use “bairn” in a sentence?
Here is “bairn” used in a sentence: “She was carrying her youngest bairn on her hip.”
What part of speech is “bairn”?
“Bairn” is a noun.
Where does the word “bairn” come from?
The word “bairn” comes from Old English. From Scots bairn, from Old English bearn ("child"), a doublet of barn (the storage building, from an unrelated sense of "storing grain").
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