youth

¹

[ yooth ]

noun

, plural youths [yooths, yoo, th, z], (collectively) youth.

1. the condition of being young.

   Antonyms: maturity

2. the appearance, freshness, vigor, spirit, etc., characteristic of one who is young.
3. the time of being young; early life:

   His youth was spent on the farm.

   Synonyms: immaturity, minority

   Antonyms: maturity

4. the period of life from puberty to the attainment of full growth; adolescence.
5. the first or early period of anything:

   The business, even in its youth, showed great potential.

6. young persons collectively.
7. a young person, especially a young man or male adolescent.

   Synonyms: boy, lad, stripling, adolescent, teenager, youngster

Youth

²

[ yooth ]

noun

1. Isle of Youth [ahyl, , uh, v , yooth]. an island in the Caribbean, a special municipality in southern Cuba. 1,182 sq. mi. (3,060 sq. km).

youth

¹

/ juːθ /

noun

1. the quality or condition of being young, immature, or inexperienced

   his youth told against him in the contest

2. the period between childhood and maturity, esp adolescence and early adulthood
3. the freshness, vigour, or vitality characteristic of young people

   youth shone out from her face

4. any period of early development

   the project was in its youth

5. a young person, esp a young man or boy
6. young people collectively

   youth everywhere is rising in revolt

Youth

²

/ juːθ /

noun

1. Isle of Youth
   an island in the NW Caribbean, south of Cuba: administratively part of Cuba from 1925. Chief town: Nueva Gerona. Pop: 80 600 (2002 est). Area: 3061 sq km (1182 sq miles) Former nameIsle of Pines Spanish nameIsla de la Juventudˈizla ðe la xuβenˈtuð

Derived Forms

• ˈyouthless, adjective

Other Words From

• youthless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of youth¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English youthe, Old English geoguth; cognate with Dutch jeugd, German Jugend

Word History and Origins

Origin of youth¹

Old English geogoth; related to Old Frisian jogethe, Old High German iugund, Gothic junda, Latin juventus

Example Sentences

“Music has saved me,” Peluso said as she accepted her trophy and recalled that the song was born during an early dawn when she remembered her youth.

From Los Angeles Times

A 22-year-old youth leader at a Van Nuys church has died from injuries sustained in a collision Friday night on Sherman Way that stemmed from an apparent street race between a Rolls-Royce and Mercedes-Benz.

From Los Angeles Times

But one day, soon after his family moved from Hawaii to Las Vegas, his new youth football team was in need of a quarterback.

From Los Angeles Times

If it’s too much to ask of Arnold that her bid for heightened naturalism make a ton of sense, “Bird” at least maintains a heartbeat of ache and affection for youth in all its rudeness, revealing a filmmaker who isn’t afraid of losing her claws if she traffics in the thing with feathers.

From Los Angeles Times

A raw fable about looking up instead of feeling down, “Bird” shows writer-director Andrea Arnold back in a familiar milieu of cramped youth on the periphery, making do with what little is available, seesawing between explosive anger and playful respite.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• minority
• teens