Meanings
- An entire community of people must provide for, and interact positively with, children in order for those children to grow up healthily and safely.
Synonyms: it takes a village
Synonyms & antonyms
proverbAn entire community of people must provide for, and interact positively with, children in order for those children to grow up healthily and safely.
Origin
Unknown. Possibly an adage, borrowed as a calque from a neighboring or contact language. Gained popularity around 1990.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 要養育一個小孩，需舉全村之力 /要养育一个小孩, 需举全村之力
- 要養育一個小孩，需舉全村之力 /要养育一个小孩an entire community must provide for children
- 需举全村之力 (yào yǎngyù yīgè xiǎohái, xū jǔ quán cūn zhī lì)an entire community must provide for children
Finnish lapsen kasvattamiseen tarvitaan koko kylä
- lapsen kasvattamiseen tarvitaan koko kyläan entire community must provide for children
Cite this entry
it takes a village to raise a child. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/it%20takes%20a%20village%20to%20raise%20a%20child
“it takes a village to raise a child.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/it%20takes%20a%20village%20to%20raise%20a%20child. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “it takes a village to raise a child,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/it%20takes%20a%20village%20to%20raise%20a%20child.
Source: it takes a village to raise a child on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.