Meaning
A child prodigy, and by extension any person who achieves remarkable success in a demanding field while still young. English has widened the word beyond its original strong association with musical prodigies, applying it to young stars in business, sport, and technology. The register is neutral to admiring, occasionally laced with envy or scepticism. Admiring but often faintly sceptical or jokey, especially when applied to adults whose prodigy years are behind them. Regional use: General English (borrowed from German).
Origin
German Wunderkind, literally 'wonder-child' - Wunder 'wonder, marvel', a cognate of Old English wundor, plus Kind 'child'. Both halves are transparent to English speakers, which helped the borrowing settle quickly. It first appears in English texts as a German word describing celebrated continental prodigies before naturalising: Merriam-Webster dates first known use to 1873, and the Online Etymology Dictionary to 1883, defining it as a child prodigy, especially in music. The extended, sometimes ironic use for any precocious high-flyer is an English development on the plainer German sense.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- wunderkinder
- wunderkinds
Usage Examples
- The orchestra hired a fourteen-year-old wunderkind as its guest conductor.
- Silicon Valley seems to anoint a new wunderkind every fiscal quarter.
- Once hailed as a mathematical wunderkind, she published her first paper at sixteen.