子・児|こko[0]heiban (flat)

1. noun, noun (suffix)child; kid; teenager; youngster; young (non-adult) person
   その子こは母親ははおやに甘あまえた。↗

   The child played the baby to his mother.
2. noun, noun (suffix)(one's) child; offspring
3. noun, noun (suffix)young womanalso 娘
   ふふっ・・・その子こ、人間にんげんじゃないの。ロボットなのよ。ア・ン・ド・ロ・イ・ド。↗

   Ha-ha ... She isn't human. She's a robot; A-n-d-r-o-i-d.
4. noun, noun (suffix)young (animal)
   鯨くじらは哺乳ほにゅう動物どうぶつである。言い換いいかえれば子こに乳ちちを与あたえる。↗

   A whale is a mammal; in other words it feeds milk to its young.
5. nounoffshoot
6. nouninterest
7. noun, financenew share
8. noun, card games, mahjongplayer who is not a dealer
9. nounyoung geisha; young prostitutealso 姑
10. nounbird egg
11. noun (suffix)-er (often of young women)after a noun or -masu stem
    彼かれはきっすいのロンドン子こです。↗

    He's a genuine Londoner.

• Synonym子供こどもNeutralThe everyday, most common word for a child. 「子」 also works alone, as in 「この子」「うちの子」, and can refer to animal young.
• Synonym児童じどうWrittenLegal and school term for children, as in 「児童福祉」; under child-welfare law it can mean anyone under 18. 「子」 is the ordinary word.
• Synonymお子様おこさまFormalVery respectful term for another person's child, common in service and business settings; more formal than 「お子さん」. Also used sarcastically of someone childish.
• Synonym子女しじょWrittenWritten word for one's sons and daughters, as in 「帰国子女」; can also mean a daughter alone.
• Synonym小人しょうにんWrittenRead 「しょうにん」, it marks the child rate on fares and price lists, the counterpart of 「大人」.
• Synonym小僧こぞうCasualColloquial and contemptuous for a young whippersnapper; also a young monk or an apprentice shop boy.
• Synonymお子さんおこさんFormalPolite way to refer to someone else's child; less formal than 「お子様」.
• Related坊やぼうやCasualAffectionate name for a little boy; also sarcastic for a young person who knows nothing of the world.
• Related童子どうじWrittenWritten word for a boy or child, found mainly in Buddhist and legendary contexts, as in 「酒呑童子」.
• Related少年しょうねんNeutralRefers to a youth, mainly a boy; frequent in written and legal usage.
• Related男児だんじWrittenWritten word for a boy, typical of statistics and news, as in 「男児出産」.
• Related子弟していWrittenWritten word for the young generation or one's sons and younger brothers, as in 「良家の子弟」.
• Related孺子じゅしWrittenWritten word for a child or green youth, often contemptuous, as in 「孺子の分際で」.
• Related鼻たれはなたれCasualColloquial for a runny-nosed kid, also figuratively a green beginner; dismissive.
• Related童わらべWrittenArchaic, literary word for a young child, best known from 「わらべ歌」; 「子」 is the ordinary word.
• RelatedちびっこCasualAffectionate, colloquial way to speak of small children, as in 「ちびっ子広場」.
• Antonym親おやNeutralAntonym of 「子」: the parents who bear and raise a child, the other side of the parent-child relationship.
• Antonym大人おとなNeutralAntonym of 「子」 in its child sense: a grown adult able to judge and act independently.

For a child, the default is 「子」 or 「子供」. Use 「児童」 in legal and school contexts, 「お子さん」 or the more formal 「お子様」 for someone else's child politely, and 「ちびっ子」 affectionately for little kids. 「少年」 and 「男児」 cover boys, 「子女」「子弟」 are written words for one's offspring, and 「小人」 appears on fares. The rest — 「孺子」「鼻たれ」「坊や」「童子」「童」「小僧」 — are literary, archaic or colloquial, several with a mocking edge. The opposites are 「親」 for parents and 「大人」 for adults.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. （こ）息子むすこ又または娘むすめ。
2. （こ）こども、児童じどう。
3. （こ）若者わかもの。特とくに若わかい女性じょせい。
4. （こ、シ） 諱いみなを作つくる。
5. （こ）女性じょせいの名前なまえを作つくる。また女性じょせいや女性じょせい風ふうのあだ名なを作つくる。
6. （こ）職業しょくぎょう名めいや人ひとの属性ぞくせいなどを表あらわす語ごを作つくる。