kid
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
An infant, or child. From the German kind; or possibly from the name for the young of a goat. Also, a shallow dish in which sailors receive their portions of food.
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Where it’s used:
Origin
British & Irish English
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “kid” mean?
An infant, or child. From the German kind; or possibly from the name for the young of a goat. Also, a shallow dish in which sailors receive their portions of food.
Is “kid” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.