adolescence

noun

ad·​o·​les·​cence ˌa-də-ˈle-sᵊn(t)s 

1

: the period of life when a child develops into an adult : the period from puberty to maturity terminating legally at the age of majority (see majority sense 2a)

He struggled through his adolescence.

2

: the state or process of growing up

3

: a stage of development (as of a language or culture) prior to maturity

Synonyms

• minority
• nonage

Examples of adolescence in a Sentence

Their children are on the verge of adolescence.

He struggled through his adolescence.

Recent Examples on the Web

For instance, Monroe had a challenging childhood, spent in 10 foster homes and two orphanages; her mother, Gladys, suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and was admitted to a mental health facility for most of her adolescence. —Vogue, 16 Nov. 2023

As her career quickly took off, she was forced to navigate her adolescence with everyone watching. —Katcy Stephan, Variety, 13 Nov. 2023

And yet, in the end, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, propelled by Blyth’s performance, manages to be the deepest expression yet of the series’ melodrama of adolescence. —Vulture, 10 Nov. 2023

He’s grown a goatee and added muscle to his frame, but still has the same laugh and sincere smile of his adolescence. —Hannah Wiley, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2023

This childish stunt leads to the boy’s arrest, jump-starting an adolescence and young adulthood marked by incarceration, teen parenthood, and financial precarity. —Condé Nast, The New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2023

Back when hip-hop was emerging from its adolescence, registering to vote, and taking its first legal drink, Blige’s voice became its scaffolding and architecture, the thing that balanced it. —Zandria Robinson, Glamour, 1 Nov. 2023

To the moody strains of Sheik’s alt-rock score, the vise of adolescence is captured in a story about pubescent youths rebelling against the warping will of adult hypocrisy and repression. —Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2023

The postpartum period is much like adolescence, with its startling physical changes and its extreme public scrutiny. —Amanda Hess, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Middle English, borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Latin adolēscentia, adulēscentia, noun derivative of adolēscent-, adolēscens adolescent entry 2

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

adolescence

noun

ad·​o·​les·​cence ˌad-ᵊl-ˈes-ᵊn(t)s 

: the state or process of growing up

also : the period of life from puberty to maturity

adolescent

-ᵊnt

adjective or noun

Etymology

Middle English adolescence "adolescence," from early French adolescence (same meaning), from Latin adolescentia (same meaning), from adolescere "to grow up" — related to adult

Medical Definition

adolescence

noun

ad·​o·​les·​cence ˌad-ᵊl-ˈes-ᵊn(t)s 

1

: the state or process of growing up

2

: the period of life from puberty to maturity terminating legally at the age of majority