young adult

adjective

: of, relating to, or being a category of fiction that is primarily intended for adolescent readers

young adult fiction/literature

We live in an era of blockbuster young adult book series: Harry Potter, Twilight, now the Hunger Games.

—Leah Wilson

Early in her four-year career as the young adult librarian of the Huckaby Public Library, Veronica Garde observed that most of the staff had a sliding scale of courtesy toward library users, teenagers being given the shortest shrift.

—A. J. Anderson

—abbreviation YA

Examples of young adult in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The actor, best known for his work on Amazon Prime’s young adult drama Panic, is set to portray influential rapper Tupac Shakur in Snoop, Universal Pictures’ biopic of entertainment mogul and music icon Snoop Dogg. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2026

The film introduces four newcomers – Aarushi Bajaj, Ansh Duggal, Bianca Arora and Piyush Khati – who headline a story centered on friendship, young love, heartbreak and the process of figuring out life as a young adult. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 24 Aug. 2026

Flying around Big Bear is completely normal behavior for young adult eagles this time of year. — Annie Colbert, Popular Science, 20 Aug. 2026

Prime Video renewed the popular young adult drama series for season 2, the Amazon streaming service said on Thursday. — ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1942, in the meaning defined above