Phrase guide

sweet summer child

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

Someone who is naive, or who has never experienced hardship.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, often, sarcastic

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: babe in the woods, ingenue, innocent, naif

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

As an idiomatic phrase, apparently from the fantasy novel A Game of Thrones (1996) by George R. R. Martin, although isolated prior occurrences of the phrase go back to the 1800s. In the novel, a young boy is called a "sweet summer child" by an old woman, since seasons last for years in the novel's world and he has yet to experience winter. Later popularized by its use in the episode "Lord Snow" (2011) of the television adaptation Game of Thrones.