Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word
niño. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
niño, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
niño in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
niño you have here. The definition of the word
niño will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
niño, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Galician
Etymology
From Old Galician-Portuguese *nio, from Latin nīdus (“nest”), from Proto-Italic *nizdos (“nest”), from Proto-Indo-European *nisdós (“nest”).
Pronunciation
Noun
niño m (plural niños)
- nest
1894, Luís Otero Pimentel, Truada de rapaces:Dempois vin dúas lavandeiras que depenicaban unha espiga de trigo na leira de Xan de Pedreira, unha pomba que voaba pró souto de Fonte Boa, unha péga que fuxía de un lagarteiro, catro corvos que espaturraban un canciño morto na carballeira, un melro que asubiaba entre as follas dun cereixo, un carpinteiro que facía o burato pró seu niño; e unha laverca que rebulía no aire, con unha miñoquiña no pico.- After this I saw two wagtails which were pecking a wheat spike at the field of Xan de Pedreira, a dove flying to the wood of Fonte Boa, a magpie fleeing from a kestrel, four ravens which were clawing at a dead pup at the oak grove, a blackbird whistling in the leaves of a cherry tree, a woodpecker making the hole of its nest; and a lark fluttering in the air with a little earthworm in its beak.
References
- Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “nyno”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
- Xavier Varela Barreiro, Xavier Gómez Guinovart (2006–2018) “nyno”, in Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: ILG
- Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “niño”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
- Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “niño”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
- Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “niño”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN
Spanish
Etymology
Inherited from Vulgar Latin *ninnus, probably imitative of infantile language; also could have originated from Latin minimus. Compare also Italian nino and Sicilian nicu. Compare English nun for an English word that is formed similarly from imitative origin of infantile speech, as well as possibly nanny and nana.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈniɲo/
- Rhymes: -iɲo
- Syllabification: ni‧ño
Noun
niño m (plural niños, feminine niña, feminine plural niñas) (diminutive niñito)
- child, boy
- Synonyms: chaval, chavo, chico, huerco, infante
- Antonym: adulto
Usage notes
- See also the gender-neutral neologism niñe/niñes.
Derived terms
See also
Further reading