juvenile
UK /ˈd͡ʒuːvənaɪl/ · US /ˈd͡ʒuvəˌnaɪl/ adjective, noun
Forms juveniles
- adjective Young; not fully developed.
- adjective Characteristic of youth or immaturity; childish.
- noun A prepubescent child.
- noun A person younger than the age of majority; a minor.
- noun (criminal law) A person younger than the age of full criminal responsibility, such that the person either cannot be held criminally liable or is subject to less severe forms of punishment.
- noun (literature) A publication for young adult readers.
- noun (theater) An actor playing a child's role.
- noun (zoology) A sexually immature animal.
- noun A two-year-old racehorse.
Synonyms
infantile juvey puerile babish babyish bairnish childish dootsie hissy lactifluous infantine immature kiddish milky infant juvie juvenile person adolescent jejune
Antonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin iuvenīlis (“youthful; juvenile”), from iuvenis (“young; a youth”) + -īlis (suffix forming adjectives indicating a relationship or a pertaining to). Iuvenis is ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yuh₁en- (“young”), from *h₂óyu (“long life; lifetime”) (from *h₂ey- (“age; life”)) + *h₁én (“in”).
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Young; youthful; as, a juvenile appearance. "A juvenile exercitation." Glanvill.
- adjective Of or pertaining to youth; as, juvenile sports.
- noun A young person or youth; --used sportively or familiarly. C. Bronté.
Etymology [L. juvenilis, from juvenis young; akin to E. young: cf. F. juvénile, juvénil. See Young.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “juvenile”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details