often attributive
1
: a young bird just fledged (see fledge sense 1)
a bird feeding her fledglings
2
: an immature or inexperienced person
fledgling medical students
3
: one that is new
a fledgling company
Examples of fledgling in a Sentence
a female bird feeding her fledglings
at hockey he's still a fledgling and needs to work on his basic skating skills
Recent Examples on the Web
The dynamic seemed a combination of engagement, respect and deference in the fledgling relationships.
—
Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 12 Jan. 2026
After helping Walt build Disneyland, Fowler stuck around to manage the fledgling park for the first 10 years of its existence.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
Furthermore, their need to get younger and faster while restocking a fledgling prospect pool has become apparent around the NHL.
—Vincent Z. Mercogliano, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Neuralink recently lured a top official away from the Food and Drug Administration office that regulates the company, a poaching that has surprised, impressed, and infuriated its competitors in a fledgling industry developing brain-computer interfaces.
—O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fledgling
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Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 12 Jan. 2026
After helping Walt build Disneyland, Fowler stuck around to manage the fledgling park for the first 10 years of its existence.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
Furthermore, their need to get younger and faster while restocking a fledgling prospect pool has become apparent around the NHL.
—Vincent Z. Mercogliano, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Neuralink recently lured a top official away from the Food and Drug Administration office that regulates the company, a poaching that has surprised, impressed, and infuriated its competitors in a fledgling industry developing brain-computer interfaces.
—O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fledgling
Cite this Entry
“Fledgling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fledgling. Accessed 14 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fledgling
noun
fledg·ling
ˈflej-liŋ 
1
: a young bird just fledged
2
: an immature or inexperienced person
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