child-free

adjective

Of a person or couple, having no children, biological, step, or adopted, as a matter of choice.

Meanings

adjectivechild-free (not comparable)

alternative childfree

  1. not comparableOf a person or couple, having no children, biological, step, or adopted, as a matter of choice.

    Being single, and childless—or child-free, as she would put it—she can do that.

    2012, Suzanne Bugler, The Child Inside, Pan Macmillan, →ISBN
    3 more examples

    Persons who choose to have child-free marriages tend to be stereotyped by friends and relatives as deviant, self-centered, or immature (Somers, 1993).

    1996, J. Kenneth Davidson, Nelwyn B. Moore, Marriage and Family: Change and Continuity, Allyn & Bacon, →ISBN

    Indeed, the tenor of the book was a direct invitation to confront the challenge that there may be benefits to choosing a childfree lifestyle.

    1999, Annily Campbell, Childfree and Sterilized: Women's Decisions and Medical Responses, A&C Black, →ISBN, page 6

    Many studies of child-free marriages indicate a higher degree of marital adjustment or satisfaction than is found among couples with children.

    2010, Bryan Strong, Christine DeVault, Theodore F. Cohen, The Marriage and Family Experience, Cengage Learning, →ISBN, page 338
  2. not comparableOf an area, where children are excluded.

    A writer in the Economist in 1998 also suggested creating more comfortable environments for themselves by excluding children: "All airlines, trains and restaurants should create child-free zones."

    2023 October 18, Dr David Turner, “Family values...”, in RAIL, number 994, pages 47-48

Origin

  1. Englishchild
  2. Proto-Indo-European*preyH-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*priHós
  4. Proto-Germanic*frijwaz
  5. Proto-West Germanic*friu
  6. Old Englishfrēo
  7. Englishchild-free

From child + -free.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French sans enfant
  • sans enfanthaving no children
Hebrew אלהורות
  • אלהורות (alhorut)having no children
Hindi संतानहीन
  • संतानहीन (santānhīn)having no children
Japanese チャイルド・フリー
  • チャイルド・フリー (chairudo-furī)having no children
Russian чайлдфри́
  • чайлдфри́ (čajldfrí)having no children
Ukrainian чайлд-фрі
  • чайлд-фрі (čajld-fri)having no children
Cite this entry
APA

child-free. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/child-free

MLA

“child-free.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/child-free. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “child-free,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/child-free.

Source: child-free on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.