The appearance of this word doesn’t match the simple definition. “Hypocoristic” (used as either a noun or an adjective) refers to a pet name or shortened version of someone’s name. A hypocoristic might be “sweetie,” or it could be “Carrie” instead of “Caroline.” The related term “hypocorism” is another word for “baby talk,” referring to the simplistic language some adults use when speaking to babies and young children. These linguistic terms come from the Greek “hupokorizesthai,” meaning “play the child.” “Hupo” translates to “under,” and “korē” means “child.”