Editing Infant (section)

{{Short description|Very young offspring of humans}}
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{{redirect-several|Baby|Infant|Newborn|Babyhood}}
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[[File:The newborn baby in men.jpg|thumb|300x300px|A newborn in a man's lap]]
{{Human growth and development}}
In common terminology, a '''baby''' is the very young [[offspring]] of adult [[human beings]], while '''infant''' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child'<ref>{{Cite web |title=Charlton T. Lewis, An Elementary Latin Dictionary, īnfāns |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0060:entry=infans |access-date=2023-04-05 |website=www.perseus.tufts.edu |archive-date=2023-04-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230423185413/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0060:entry=infans |url-status=live }}</ref>) is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to [[Juvenile (organism)|juveniles]] of other organisms. A '''newborn''' is, in colloquial use, a baby who is only hours, days, or weeks old; while in medical contexts, a newborn or '''neonate''' (from Latin, ''neonatus'', newborn) is an infant in the first 28 days after [[Human birth|birth]]<ref name="mwn">{{cite web | title = Neonate | work = Merriam-Webster online dictionary | publisher = [[Merriam-Webster]] | url = http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=neonate | access-date = 2007-03-27 | url-status=live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070311003331/http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=neonate | archive-date = 2007-03-11 }}</ref> (the term applies to [[Preterm birth|premature]], [[Pregnancy#Term|full term]], and [[Postterm pregnancy|postmature]] infants).

Infants born prior to 37 weeks of gestation are called "premature",<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nöcker-Ribaupierre |first=Monika |date=2015-06-01 |title=Originalbeiträge. Internationale musiktherapeutische Ansätze für frühgeborene Kinder/ International Music Therapy Approaches with premature Infants |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.13109/muum.2015.36.2.106 |journal=Musiktherapeutische Umschau |volume=36 |issue=2 |pages=106–118 |doi=10.13109/muum.2015.36.2.106 |issn=0172-5505|url-access=subscription }}</ref> those born between 39 and 40 weeks are "full term", those born through 41 weeks are "late term", and anything beyond 42 weeks is considered "post term".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of Term Pregnancy |url=https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2013/11/definition-of-term-pregnancy |access-date=2023-12-20 |website=www.acog.org |language=en}}</ref>

Before birth, the offspring is called a [[fetus]]. The term ''infant'' is typically applied to very young children under one year of age; however, definitions may vary and may include children up to two years of age. When a human child learns to walk, they are appropriately called a [[toddler]] instead.