Synonyms of adult

adult 1 of 2

noun

as in grown-up

a fully grown person

at the beach, the adults sat under broad umbrellas while the children splashed in the water

Synonyms & Similar Words

• grown-up
• elder
• senior citizen
• oldster
• middle-ager
• ancient
• graybeard
• old-timer
• senior
• gaffer

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• child
• kid
• toddler
• infant
• cub
• tyke
• tot
• moppet
• baby
• adolescent
• youth
• juvenile
• bairn
• tad
• youngster
• minor
• teen
• teenager
• youngling
• preteen
• tween
• teenybopper
• teener
• preteen-ager

adult

2 of 2

adjective

ə-ˈdəlt 

1

as in mature

relating to or typical of adults; displaying proper maturity

an adult reaction to the issue

Synonyms & Similar Words

• mature
• grown-up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• adolescent
• immature
• infantile
• childish
• kiddish

2

as in pornographic

dealing in or with explicitly sexual material

an adult magazine

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pornographic
• mature
• erotic
• sexy
• suggestive
• X-rated
• hard-core
• porny
• bedroom
• gross
• indecent
• crude
• lustful
• obscene
• lascivious
• filthy
• kinky
• soft-core
• lewd
• bawdy
• coarse
• prurient
• ribald
• smutty
• salacious
• naughty
• dirty
• unprintable
• vulgar
• perverted
• immodest
• racy
• unbecoming
• indecorous
• earthy
• foul
• wicked
• salty
• profane
• wanton
• nasty
• debasing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• clean
• Victorian
• puritanical
• prudish
• G-rated
• proper
• prim
• straitlaced
• priggish
• correct
• decent
• polite
• genteel
• decorous
• seemly

3

as in matured

fully grown or developed

insects that are butterflies in their adult stage

Synonyms & Similar Words

• mature
• matured
• ripe
• older
• aged
• aging
• full-fledged
• full-blown
• old
• ripened
• golden
• long-lived
• mellow

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• young
• juvenile
• adolescent
• youthful
• immature
• green
• unripe
• burgeoning
• youngish
• flowering
• flourishing
• unripened
• blooming
• unfinished
• undeveloped
• unformed
• blossoming
• unfledged

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of adult

Noun

Even as an adult, I was not fully settled into a point of view until my 40s. — Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2026

Fortinsky defended the adult nature of the campaign by noting that Novig is restricted to users aged 21 and over. — Amelie Claydon, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026

Adjective

Justin Vernon’s midwestern charm and pliable falsetto has always endeared him to indie-rock dads raised on Michael McDonald, but starting a family himself between Bon Iver projects turned this year’s Sable, Fable into a deep examination of the fatherly adult contemporary figure in popular music. — Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025

Corrigan has also appeared in independent non-adult films such as Chillerama and appeared in Gus Van Sant’s Harvey Milk biopic Milk. — Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 29 Oct. 2025