Meaning & use
child prodigy
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Meanings
nouncountable
a young person, usually a child, who shows ability at the level of a skilled adult in one subject or activity.
Grammar: Countable: say a child prodigy or two child prodigies; the plural changes only the second word.
Patterns
- a child prodigy at something
- a child prodigy in something
- be called a child prodigy
By the age of six she was a child prodigy at the piano, playing pieces written for adults.
He was a child prodigy in mathematics and started university at fourteen.
The film tells the story of a child prodigy who struggles to make friends at school.
nouncountable
someone who did something amazing at a very young age and is still known for it later in life.
Grammar: Often used of adults when looking back at their early success: as a child prodigy, she...
Patterns
- as a child prodigy
- a former child prodigy
As a child prodigy, he gave his first public concert before his tenth birthday.
She is a former child prodigy who now teaches music to teenagers.
People still describe him as a child prodigy, even though he is in his forties now.
Word forms
| plural | child prodigies |
|---|
Common combinations
- a musical child prodigy
- The school invited a musical child prodigy to play at the ceremony.
- a child prodigy at chess
- He was a child prodigy at chess and beat adults in local tournaments.
- a former child prodigy
- The interview with the former child prodigy focused on his life after fame.
- be hailed as a child prodigy
- At eight, she was hailed as a child prodigy by the national press.
- a child prodigy who grew up
- The book follows a child prodigy who grew up to be an ordinary office worker.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gifted child
- A broader, gentler term for a child with high ability; it does not suggest adult-level skill in one field, so it fits school reports better than news stories about astonishing talent.
- genius
- Usually describes an adult or a general level of exceptional intelligence, while child prodigy always points to a young age and often to one specific skill.
- wunderkind
- A borrowed German word with a similar meaning; it sounds more formal or journalistic and is less common in everyday speech.
Word family
- prodigy noun
- A young person with exceptional talent, or (rarely) a surprising and wonderful thing.
- prodigious adjective
- Extremely large or impressive, as in prodigious talent or a prodigious memory.
Commonly confused: child prodigy or prodigal? child prodigy or protégé?
child prodigy vs prodigal
Prodigal means wastefully extravagant, as in the prodigal son, and has nothing to do with talent. The two words look similar but come from different roots, so keep them apart in writing.
child prodigy vs protégé
A protégé is a person guided and helped by an older, more experienced mentor. A child prodigy may also be someone's protégé, but the words describe different things: natural talent versus a mentoring relationship.
Practice
Which sentence uses "child prodigy" correctly?
Choose one answer.
"A child prodigy at something" is the usual pattern for an activity, so "at the violin" fits. "Of" does not follow prodigy in this sense, and "in the violin" treats the instrument as a field rather than an activity; "on the violin" describes playing the instrument, not being a prodigy at it.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “child prodigy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.