a baby a naive, gullible, or unsuspecting person (often in the phrase a babe in arms) a young person, esp a woman, perceived as being sexually attractive
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
babe /beɪb/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- a baby or small child.
- Slang Terms
- Sex and Gender[Slang (sometimes disparaging and offensive).]a girl or woman.
babe
(bāb),USA pronunciation n.
- a baby or child.
- an innocent or inexperienced person.
- Dialect Terms(usually cap.) [Southern U.S.](used, often before the surname, as a familiar name for a boy or man, esp. the youngest of a family.)
- Slang Terms
- Sex and Gender[Sometimes Disparaging and Offensive.]a girl or woman, esp. an attractive one.
- Sex and Gender(sometimes cap.) an affectionate or familiar term of address (sometimes offensive when used to strangers, casual acquaintances, subordinates, etc., esp. by a male to a female).
- Idioms babe in the woods, an innocent, unsuspecting person, esp. one likely to be victimized by others:Some highly informed people are mere babes in the woods where the stock market is concerned.
- 1150–1200; 1915–20 for def. 4; Middle English; early Middle English baban, probably nursery word in origin
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged toddler, infant, tot, nursling.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::