n.
(pl. babies)
- a child or animal that is newly or recently born.
- a timid or childish person.
- informal a person with whom one is having a romantic relationship (often as a form of address).
adj.
comparatively small or immature of its kind.
v.
(babies, babying, babied)
pamper or be overprotective towards.
Phrase
- throw the baby out with the bathwater
discard something valuable along with other things that are undesirable.
Derivative
Etymology
ME: prob. imitative of an infant's first attempts at speech.