puberty

noun

pu·​ber·​ty ˈpyü-bər-tē 

1

: the condition of being or the period of becoming first capable of reproducing sexually that is brought on by the production of sex hormones and the maturing of the reproductive organs (such as the testes and ovaries), development of secondary sex characteristics (such as male facial hair growth and female breast development), and in humans and the higher primates by the first occurrence of menstruation in the female

2

: the age at which puberty occurs often construed legally as 14 in boys and 12 in girls

Examples of puberty in a Sentence

He reached puberty later than most of his classmates.

Recent Examples on the Web

However, the text of the bill does not specify whether a child needs to be on puberty blockers or have undergone surgery to be affirmed by their parents. —Jeremy Childs, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2023

Boys and girls are equally likely to have food allergies, but as both age past puberty, food allergies among women grow much more common, especially in middle age. —Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2023

That is until crushes, popular girls, and puberty wreak havoc on their plans and friendships. —Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 30 Aug. 2023

Stoner went on to discuss how puberty affected their body image. —Amy Rosner, Peoplemag, 18 Sep. 2023

Many of the calls for more research on gender-affirming care particularly focus on the importance of more evidence on puberty blockers. —Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 15 Sep. 2023

Or the fact that all three of her children with Donald Trump reached puberty inside its walls. —Curbed, 12 Sep. 2023

Alabama families with transgender children asked a full appellate court Monday to review a decision that will let the state enforce a ban on treating minors with gender-affirming hormones and puberty blockers. —Savannah Tryens-Fernandes | [e-mail], al, 12 Sep. 2023

Gender affirming health care, surgery, puberty blockers, and other things that prohibited all health records must reflect their gender at birth. —Laura Johnston, cleveland, 12 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Middle English puberte, from Latin pubertas, from puber pubescent

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

puberty

noun

pu·​ber·​ty pyü-bərt-ē 

1

: the condition of being or the period of becoming first capable of reproducing sexually that is brought on by the production of sex hormones and the maturing of the sex organs (as the testes and ovaries) and is marked by the development of secondary sex characteristics (as male facial hair growth and female breast development) and by the occurrence of the first menstruation in the female

2

: the age at which puberty occurs often defined legally as 14 in boys and 12 in girls

Medical Definition

puberty

noun

pu·​ber·​ty ˈpyü-bərt-ē 

plural puberties

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