Is there a special term for "the last child"?

[moonlike]

Hi
Are there any special terms or expressions that refer to the last child of the family, who is sometimes indulged with a lot of things. I heard "the child of the family", is that true?

Thanks a million.

[bhaisahab]

Hi
Are there any special terms or expressions that refer to the last child of the family, who is sometimes indulged with a lot of things. I heard "the child of the family", is that true?

Thanks a million.

I've heard "The baby of the family".

[Tdol]

I've heard "The baby of the family".

As the, ahem, youngest in my family, I heard it too when I was a child.

[Barb_D]

Adults will even refer to their sibling as "the baby in the family" - despite the "baby" being in his or her 40s or older. So I'd say it's pretty universal!

[BobK]

I've heard "The baby of the family".

And often the name sticks, even when one is no longer the youngest. The younger of my two older sisters still calls me her 'baby brother'.

b

[Barb_D]

A great many of us seem to fall into that category!

I would add that it doesn't necessarily imply the youngest is spoiled, which you mentioned at the beginning of this thread.

It just means that the parents, having realized they'd achieved perfection at last, didn't see a need for more children. Or something like that.

[JMurray]

I would add that it doesn't necessarily imply the youngest is spoiled, which you mentioned at the beginning of this thread. It just means that the parents, having realized they'd achieved perfection at last, didn't see a need for more children.

I resemble that remark, as the second of four, with a perfect little sister.

not a teacher
not perfect

[emsr2d2]

I have no brothers or sisters but am one of four cousins who spent quite a lot of time together as children. The youngest is still referred to as the baby and on the rare occasion that all four of us are present at Christmas dinner, we four "children" still get a different Christmas cracker on our plate and the dinner host still says "Let the kids take their seats first please". The four of us "kids" range in age from 28 to 43!

[Tdol]

I would add that it doesn't necessarily imply the youngest is spoiled

Not at all- the remote control was almost certainly invented by a baby of some family.

[paul.moss]

Sometimes, We used the word " afterthought", which is slangy and humorous, and probably not as universal as "baby".