Word.ws English Dictionary

stepchild

Syllables: step·child/ˈstɛp.tʃaɪld/

stepchild noun: the child of one's spouse from a previous relationship.

Noun

stepchild (plural stepchildren)

  1. The child of one's spouse from a previous relationship.
    • On Monday, Vice President Kamala Harris appeared on “The Drew Barrymore Show,” and in a lighthearted moment, explained — as she did during the last presidential election cycle — that in her blended family, her stepchildren affectionately call her Momala.2024 May 1, Charles M. Blow, “Kamala Harris Isn’t Americans’ ‘Momala.’ She’s Our Vice President.”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 03 May 2024
    • Calculating the growth in stepfamilies isn’t simple, but a demographic analysis published last year estimated that about 16 percent of Americans over age 70 have at least one stepchild. […] Overall, stepchildren provide less care to older adults2024 August 3, Paula Span, “When Elder Care Is All in the Stepfamily”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 29 Aug 2024
    Synonyms:
    stepbairn, stepkid, step
  2. (obsolete) A bereaved child; one who has lost father or mother.
    Synonyms:
    orphan

stepchild meaning in Bengali, Tagalog and Indonesian

stepchild in Bengali

সপত্নীপুত্র, কন্যা

stepchild in Tagalog

the child of one's spouse from his or her previous partner
anak na pangaman

stepchild in Indonesian

the child of one's spouse from his or her previous partner
anak tiri

Synonyms of stepchild

Antonyms

Forms of stepchild

pluralstepchildren
alternative formstep-child

Plural of stepchild: stepchildren

Origin of stepchild

From Middle English stepchild, stepchyld, from Old English stēopċild (“stepchild”), equivalent to step- + child. Compare Dutch stiefkind (“stepchild”), German Stiefkind (“stepchild”), Swedish styvbarn (“stepchild”).

Words formed from stepchild

Questions about stepchild

What does stepchild mean?
Stepchild means the child of one's spouse from a previous relationship.
What is stepchild in Bengali?
Stepchild in Bengali is সপত্নীপুত্র, কন্যা. See Stepchild meaning in Bengali.
What part of speech is stepchild?
Stepchild is a noun.
How do you pronounce stepchild?
Stepchild is pronounced /ˈstɛp.tʃaɪld/.
What is the plural of stepchild?
The plural of stepchild is stepchildren.

Words near stepchild in the dictionary

  1. stepcest
  2. stepchair
  3. stepchairs
  4. stepchart
  5. stepcharts
  6. stepchild
  7. stepchildhood
  8. stepchildren
  9. stepcousin
  10. stepcousins
  11. stepdad

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: stepchild (page history and authors); stepchild (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-stepchild.wav.

Cite this entry: “stepchild.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/stepchild. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.