Where Did the Term "Little Shaver" For a Small Child Come From and What Does the Expression Mean?

During the period when settlers spent a lot of time cutting wood, if a son looked or acted like his father he was called a “chip off the old block”.

It meant that except for size, the two were as clearly related as a chip cut from its original block of wood from the family tree.

A little shaver is the same, except that a shaving is smaller than a chip.

where did the term little shaver for a small child come from and what does the expression mean

A “sprig” on the other hand, is a child too small yet to even have a branch on the family tree.

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Where Did the Term “Little Shaver” For a Small Child Come From and What Does the Expression Mean?

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