Definition of nonagenext
1
as in childhood
the state or time of being a child the short stories of the novelist's nonage have only recently been discovered by scholars

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2
as in adolescence
the transitional period between childhood and adulthood the indiscretions of his long-ago nonage have come back to haunt him now that he's a serious presidential contender

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for nonage
Noun
  • But Wendy Goodman, New York Magazine’s design editor who has been a balletgoer since childhood, pays to sit at the front of the theater.
    — Fiorella Valdesolo, Curbed, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Youth sports, once the redoubt of aimless childhood play, have become hopelessly commercialized.
    — Nora Kenney Mittiga, Washington Post, 21 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • But bringing their three teenagers—Joey (17), Sundance (16), and Scout(13)— to the island at this precise window of adolescence felt different from the start.
    — Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Calcium is important for bone growth, and childhood and adolescence are crucial times for bone growth.
    — Sarah Schlichter, Parents, 25 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Many of them, including Ned and his childhood friend and rival, Roland, are scarred by their time as youth players, haunted by memories of the sadistic coaches and cruel, competitive fathers who terrorized them both on and off the court.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2026
  • The two of them spent the rest of the night pressed together in the crowded bar, shouting at each other to be heard over the sound of drunk youth.
    — Josephine Reisman, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Nonage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonage. Accessed 27 Sep. 2026.

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