Main Entry: pu·ber·ty

Pronunciation: \ˈpyü-bərt-ē\

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural pu·ber·ties

1 : the condition of being or the period of becoming first capable of reproducing sexually marked by maturing of the genital organs, development of secondary sex characteristics, and in humans and the higher primates by the first occurrence of menstruation in the female
2 : the age at which puberty occurs being typically between 13 and 16 years in boys and 11 and 14 in girls and often construed legally as 14 in boys and 12 in girls