changeling

noun

change·ling ˈchānj-liŋ

Synonyms of changeling

archaic : turncoat

: a child secretly exchanged for another in infancy

archaic : imbecile

changeling adjective

Examples of changeling in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

The trows might steal you away and leave a changeling in your place. — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025 Goblins steal a mother’s child and replace it with a ravenous changeling. — Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023 Since then, the Star Trek franchise has studiously avoided the changelings. — Alex Cranz, The Verge, 2 Mar. 2023 Like a changeling—a motif that recurs throughout the novel—the old narrator has been taken and replaced by someone new. — Bekah Waalkes, The Atlantic, 25 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for changeling

Word History

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler

The first known use of changeling was in 1534

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Browse Nearby Words

changeless

changeling

changemaker

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Changeling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/changeling. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Kids Definition

changeling

noun

change·ling ˈchānj-liŋ

: a child secretly exchanged for another in infancy

changeling

noun

Examples of changeling in a Sentence

Word History

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

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