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

Four generations now share the space — Ross’ toddler, her young adult daughter, her mother in her 70s, Ross, and Pops. —Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 23 Sep. 2025

Casey Mauro, who participated in the Dateline NBC program as a young adult in the mid-2000s, discusses her time on the show in the new documentary Predators, which chronicles the history and impact of To Catch a Predator. —Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Sep. 2025

Hoover is the author of over 20 novels in the romance, young adult and psychological thriller genres. —Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2025

The trilogy has demonstrated the power of young adult romance stories to transcend cultural and language barriers. —Veronica Villafañe, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1942, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for young adult

• catapult
• subadult
• consult
• exult
• insult
• iseult
• occult
• result
• cult