French Word for Baby

Looking for the French word for baby? The correct translation for baby is "un bébé" (masculine gender). However the proper term for a loved little girl would be "une chérie." Interestingly, the French have no equivalent for the English term "newborn," and it is said that they actually find it strange that Americans refer to recently born babies as "new."

Here are some common French phrases which include the French adjective "baby":

• Des cheveux de bébé = Baby hair
• Aliments pour bébés = Baby food
• Bébé phoque = Baby seal
• Attendre un bébé = To be expecting a baby

Now if you're already looking for the French word for baby, you might also be interested in learning some French baby talk. Much like in English and other languages, baby talk in French typically consists of a single syllable repeated twice. Here are a few examples to get you started:

• avoir bobo - to have a boo-boo, be hurt
• faire caca - to go number 2
• faire dodo - to go beddy-bye, to go to sleep
• Au dodo! - Go to bed!
• la toto - a car
• le toutou - a doggy

And since we're already talking about the French word for baby, how about some French baby names? Naming a baby can be a challenging task for parents, as a name is something that sticks with you for your entire life. On the other hand, choosing a French baby name can be lots of fun, and there are mountains baby naming books to help you out, as well as free online resources just teeming with name suggestions for your little one.

If you are looking for a standard French baby name, you might want to consider a hyphenated name, such as: Paul-Henri, Jean-Claude, or Adrianne-Yvonne. It is also common practice to convert male names to female names by simply adding the letter "e" and/or doubling a letter at the end, as in: Adrian-Adrianne; Marcel-Marcelle; Jean-Jeane: Michel-Michelle; Daniel-Danielle. However if you are more inclined toward interesting and meaningful names, you may want to consider Agnes for a girl (which stems from the French word agneau meaning lamb), or Oceane, a very popular girl's name in France, stemming from the French word for ocean.

And in case you're wondering if you can address your date, your wife, your girlfriend, your boyfriend, or your fiancée using the French word for baby (mon bébé), the answer is: Yes! Here are some more French terms of endearment for your little one or for your loved one:

• Mon amour = My love
• Mon ange = My angel
• Ma belle = My beautiful
• Mon cher/Ma chère = My dear
• Mon chérie/Ma chérie = My dearie
• Mon canard = My duck