adj.

1. Of, relating to, or undergoing adolescence. See synonyms at young.
2. Characteristic of adolescence; immature: an adolescent sense of humor.

n.

A young person who has undergone puberty but who has not reached full maturity; a teenager.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin adolēscēns, adolēscent-, present participle of adolēscere, to grow up : ad-, ad- + alēscere, to grow, inchoative of alere, to nourish.]

WORD HISTORY   The adolescent grows up to become the adult. The words adolescent and adult ultimately come from forms of the same Latin word, adolēscere, meaning “to grow up.” The present participle of adolēscere, adolēscēns, from which adolescent derives, means “growing up,” while the past participle adultus, the source of adult, means “grown up.” Appropriately enough, adolescent, first recorded in English in a work written perhaps in 1440, seems to have come into the language before adult, first recorded in a work published in 1531.

noun

A young person, usually between the ages of 13 and 19: teen, teenager, youth. Informal teener. See youth/age/maturity.

adj

Definition: being pre-adult or immature
Antonyms: adult, infant

n

Definition: person in puberty, pre-adulthood
Antonyms: adult, infant

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IN BRIEF: An older child or teenager.

The day the child realizes that all adults are imperfect, he becomes an adolescent; the day he forgives them, he becomes an adult; the day he forgives himself, he becomes wise. — Alden Nowlen

Common misspelling(s) of adolescent

• adolecent