bairn

English

Alternative forms

• barn

Etymology

From Middle English barn, bern, from Old English (Anglian dialect) bearn (“child, son, descendant, offspring, issue, prodigy”) and Old Norse barn (“child”), both from Proto-Germanic *barną (“child”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- (“to bear, bring forth”). Cognate with West Frisian bern (“child”), North Frisian baern, born (“child”), Middle High German barn (“child, son, daughter”), Swedish barn (“child”), Icelandic barn (“child”), Albanian barrë (“pregnancy, child”). See also barn.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /beə(ɹ)n/

Noun

bairn (plural bairns)

1. (Scotland, and parts of Northern England) A child or baby.

Synonyms

• See also Wikisaurus:child.

References

• The New Geordie Dictionary, Frank Graham, 1987, ISBN 0946928118
• Newcastle 1970s, Scott Dobson and Dick Irwin, [1]
• Northumberland Words, English Dialect Society, R. Oliver Heslop, 1893–4[2]
• Todd's Geordie Words and Phrases, George Todd, Newcastle, 1977[3]
• A Dictionary of North East Dialect, Bill Griffiths, 2005, Northumbria University Press, ISBN 1904794165
• “bairn” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary (2001).
• bairn in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913

Anagrams

• abrin
• brain
• Brian, brian
• riban

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Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA: [beːrn]

Noun

bairn (plural bairns)

1. child

Derived terms

• bairnie
• grandbairn
• stap-bairn

Verb

tae bairn (third-person singular simple present bairns, present participle bairnin, simple past bairnt, past participle bairnt)

1. to make pregnant