juvenile
Other forms: juveniles; juvenilely
If you're being juvenile, you're not acting your age. Unless of course you are a juvenile. In which case, carry on.
While the noun juvenile refers to someone not physically or emotionally mature, the word is often used as an adjective to refer to anything specifically for young people, such as juvenile reading materials or movies. It can be derisive, as in "Don't act so juvenile," suggesting a silliness unbecoming an adult. The word comes from the Latin juvenīlis, meaning "youthful" — similar, but much more flattering.
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of or relating to or characteristic of or appropriate for children or young people“juvenile diabetes”“juvenile fashions”
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displaying or suggesting a lack of maturity“their behavior was juvenile”synonyms: adolescent, jejune, puerile, sophomoricimmaturecharacteristic of a lack of maturity
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a young person, not fully developedsynonyms: juvenile personantonyms:adulta fully developed person from maturity onwardtypes:child, fry, kid, minor, nestling, nipper, shaver, small fry, tiddler, tike, tyke, youngstera young person of either sexingenuean artless innocent young girl (especially as portrayed on the stage)bairna child: son or daughterbladea dashing young manbustera robust childchangelinga child secretly exchanged for another in infancychild prodigy, infant prodigy, wonder child, wunderkinda prodigy whose talents are recognized at an early agehobbledehoyan awkward bad-mannered adolescent boykiddya young childmoda British teenager or young adult in the 1960s; noted for their clothes consciousness and opposition to the rockersorphana child who has lost both parentspachucoa Mexican-American teenager who belongs to a neighborhood gang and who dresses in showy clothespeanuta young child who is small for his ageposter childa child afflicted by some disease or deformity whose picture is used on posters to raise money for charitable purposespunk, punk rockera teenager or young adult who is a performer (or enthusiast) of punk rock and a member of the punk youth subculturerockera teenager or young adult in the 1960s who wore leather jackets and rode motorcyclespupil, school-age child, schoolchilda young person attending school (up through senior high school)sillya word used for misbehaving childrenslipa young and slender personsproga childurchina poor and often mischievous city childwaifa person, especially a young woman, who is extremely thin
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Vocabulary lists containing juvenile
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