love-child
Definition
- Noun:
- A child born to parents who are not married to each other: "love-child" is a somewhat dated or euphemistic term for an illegitimate child, specifically one conceived in a romantic relationship outside of marriage.
- Connotation: The term often carries a softer, less judgmental tone than "bastard," implying the child was born from a loving, though socially unrecognized, union.
Usage Examples
- (A child born to unmarried parents.)
- (An illegitimate child in a narrative context.)
Advanced Usage
- "to be a love-child of [someone]": can be used metaphorically to describe something that is the result of a creative or unconventional union.
- The art project was a love-child of two rival designers. (The project emerged from an unexpected collaboration.)
Variants and Related Words
- Love-child (n): the standard form; also written as "love child" (two words) in modern usage.
- Illegitimate (adj): (of a child) born to parents not legally married.
- The law once discriminated against illegitimate children. (Children born out of wedlock.)
- Bastard (n, dated/offensive): an older, more derogatory term for a love-child.
Synonyms
- Illegitimate child: a child born outside of marriage (neutral, formal).
- Natural child: an older legal term for a child born to unmarried parents.
- Out-of-wedlock child: a modern, neutral phrase.
Related Idioms
- "A child of love": a poetic synonym for a love-child.
- He was a child of love, born during a passionate affair. (A love-child conceived in romance.)
- "Born on the wrong side of the blanket": an old-fashioned idiom meaning born to unmarried parents.
- In those days, being born on the wrong side of the blanket was a social stigma. (Being a love-child was shameful.)