Babe, Baby and Babble All Imitate Infant Sounds
A babe is a baby, or informally an attractive person. The word imitates the sounds infants make.
A babe is an infant, and in informal use an attractive person or a term of endearment. The word imitates infant speech: *babe*, *baby*, *babble* and *baboon* all rest on the *ba-ba* sounds babies make while learning to speak. Many languages independently produce similar words for the same reason. *Babes in the wood* means the helplessly inexperienced, from an old ballad, and *out of the mouths of babes* comes from the Psalms.
- An infant. *A babe in arms.*
- A term of endearment. *Thanks, babe.*
- Baby — the fuller form. *A baby.*
- Babble — related. *Babbling.*
- Imitative. *From infant sounds.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | babe | A babe. |
| Plural | babes | Babes. |
| Related | baby | A baby. |
| Related | babble | Babble. |
| Register | informal | Informal. |
- A babe in arms.Infant.
- Babes in the wood.Idiom.
- The sounds are imitative.Formation.
Baby words across languages
- Mama and papa — near-universal, from the easiest sounds to make
- Baba — appears for father or baby in dozens of languages
- Dada — likewise, independently in unrelated families
- Babble — English, from the same source
- These are not borrowings but independent results of infant sound development
Middle English *babe*, imitative of infant speech, related to *baby* and *babble*.
Why do so many languages have similar baby words?
Because they imitate the earliest sounds infants produce. Similar words arise independently rather than by borrowing.
What are babes in the wood?
The helplessly innocent or inexperienced, from an old English ballad about two abandoned children.