Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[christina_nguyen]

i have a cousin. She's one month old. She's a girl.

How do I combine these three sentences into one?
I have a one-month-old-baby-girl cousin??

[2006]

If you say she is one month old, you don't need the word "baby".
Try again.

[christina_nguyen]

I have a one-month-old-girl cousin??

that sounds kinda weird

[2006]

Firstly, omit the hyphen between "old" and "girl".
Secondly, "girl" is a noun and really should not be used as an adjective. Use "female" instead.

So we can say "I have a one-month-old female cousin." or "I have a female cousin who is one month old." (Note that, only in the first sentence, "one-month-old" is a compound adjective and requires hyphens.)

[christina_nguyen]

is the word "female" used regularly for a baby girl?

i thought "female" was only used for mature people



ps. thanks 2006 for answering my question

[2006]

"Female" can be used for any age.

Of course people usually refer to a baby as a baby girl or baby boy. ("Baby", like "female", can be an adjective or a noun.)

If you want to use an adjective you should use "female" because "girl" is a noun.

[christina_nguyen]

i got it now

thx 2006