adolescent

«adolescent» in Mova's school dictionary: a young person who is growing from a child into an adult… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

part of speech

noun (an adolescent, adolescents); adjective (adolescent)

meaning for a pupil

1) An adolescent is a young person who is growing from a child into an adult, usually aged about 12 to 18; a teenager. tree →

2) Adolescent means to do with this time of life. tree →

3) (disapproving) Adolescent can describe behaviour that is silly or immature, like a teenager showing off. tree →

sense in the lessons

In health and PSHE lessons it comes with puberty and growing up; doctors and books for parents use it. It tells the reader someone is no longer a little child but not yet an adult. Phrases: «adolescent years», «adolescent health», «adolescent behaviour».

examples

• An adolescent's body changes a lot during puberty. tree →
• My big sister is an adolescent now, and she wants more privacy. tree →
• The library has a section for adolescent readers. tree →
• Adolescents need plenty of sleep. tree →
• The book is about the adolescent years of a famous scientist. tree →
• Throwing food was a bit adolescent, Dad said. tree →

note

Use «an»: an adolescent. Noun for the time of life: «adolescence». More formal than «teenager», «teen», «young person». Not a rude word in its main sense.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «adolescent» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.