young

¹

[ yuhng ]

adjective

, young·er [yuhng, -ger], young·est [yuhng, -gist].

1. being in the first or early stage of life or growth; youthful; not old:

   a young woman.

   Synonyms: growing

   Antonyms: old, mature

2. having the appearance, freshness, vigor, or other qualities of youth.
3. of or relating to youth:

   in one's young days.

4. inexperienced or immature.
5. not far advanced in years in comparison with another or others.
6. junior, as applied to the younger of two persons having the same name:

   the young Mr. Smith.

7. being in an early stage generally, as of existence, progress, operation, development, or maturity; new; early:

   a young wine; It is a young company, not yet firmly established.

8. representing or advocating recent or progressive tendencies, policies, or the like.

noun

1. those who have youth; young persons collectively:

   the educated young of today; a game for young and old.

2. young offspring:

   a mother hen protecting her young.

Young

²

[ yuhng ]

noun

1. Andrew (Jackson, Jr.), born 1932, U.S. clergyman, Black civil rights leader, politician, and diplomat: mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, 1981–89.
2. Art(hur Henry), 1866–1944, U.S. cartoonist and author.
3. Brigham, 1801–77, U.S. leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
4. Charles, 1864–1922, U.S. army colonel: highest-ranking Black officer in World War I.
5. Denton True Cy, 1867–1955, U.S. baseball player.
6. Edward, 1683–1765, English poet.
7. Ella, 1867–1956, Irish poet and mythologist in the U.S.
8. Lester Willis PresPrez, 1909–59, U.S. jazz tenor saxophonist.
9. Owen D., 1874–1962, U.S. lawyer, industrialist, government administrator, and financier.
10. Stark, 1881–1963, U.S. drama critic, novelist, and playwright.
11. Thomas, 1773–1829, English physician, physicist, mathematician, and Egyptologist.
12. Whitney M., Jr., 1921–71, U.S. social worker and educator: executive director of the National Urban League 1961–71.

young

¹

/ jʌŋ /

adjective

1. 1. having lived, existed, or been made or known for a relatively short time

      a young man

      a young country

      a young movement

   2. ( as collective noun; preceded by the )

      the young

2. youthful or having qualities associated with youth; vigorous or lively

   she's very young for her age

3. of or relating to youth

   in my young days

4. having been established or introduced for a relatively short time

   a young member

5. in an early stage of progress or development; not far advanced

   the day was young

6. geography
   1. (of mountains) formed in the Alpine orogeny and still usually rugged in outline
   2. another term for youthful
7. often capital of or relating to a rejuvenated group or movement or one claiming to represent the younger members of the population, esp one adhering to a political ideology

   Young Socialists

   Young England

noun

1. functioning as plural offspring, esp young animals

   a rabbit with her young

2. with young
   (of animals) pregnant

Young

²

/ jʌŋ /

noun

1. YoungBrigham18011877MUSRELIGION: Mormon Brigham (ˈbrɪɡəm). 1801–77, US Mormon leader, who led the Mormon migration to Utah and founded Salt Lake City (1847)
2. YoungEdward16831765MEnglishWRITING: poetTHEATRE: dramatist Edward. 1683–1765, English poet and dramatist, noted for his Night Thoughts on Life, Death, and Immortality (1742–45)
3. YoungLester19091959MUSMUSIC: jazz saxophonistMUSIC: jazz clarinettist Lester. 1909–59, US saxophonist and clarinetist. He was a leading early exponent of the tenor saxophone in jazz
4. YoungNeil (Percival)1945MCanadianMUSIC: rock guitaristMUSIC: singerMUSIC: songwriter Neil ( Percival ). born 1945, Canadian rock guitarist, singer, and songwriter. His albums include Harvest (1972), Rust Never Sleeps (1979), Ragged Glory (1990), and Prairie Wind (2005)
5. YoungThomas17731829MEnglishSCIENCE: physicistMEDICINE: physicianHISTORY: Egyptologist Thomas. 1773–1829, English physicist, physician, and Egyptologist. He helped to establish the wave theory of light by his experiments on optical interference and assisted in the decipherment of the Rosetta Stone

Young

/ yŭng /

1. British physicist and physician who is best known for his contributions to the wave theory of light and his discovery of how the lens of the human eye changes shape to focus on objects of different distances. He also studied surface tension and elasticity, and Young's modulus (a measure of the rigidity of materials) is named for him. He is also credited with the first scientific definition of the word energy .

Derived Forms

• ˈyoungish, adjective

Other Words From

• quasi-young adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of young¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English yong(e), Old English geong; cognate with Dutch jong, German jung, Old Norse ungr, Gothic jungs; akin to Latin juvenis

Word History and Origins

Origin of young¹

Old English geong; related to Old Saxon, Old High German iung, Old Norse ungr, Latin iuvenis, Sanskrit yuvan

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. with young, (of an animal) pregnant.

Synonym Study

Young, youthful, juvenile all refer to lack of age. Young is the general word for that which is undeveloped, immature, and in process of growth: a young colt, child; young shoots of wheat. Youthful has connotations suggesting the favorable characteristics of youth, such as vigor, enthusiasm, and hopefulness: youthful sports, energy, outlook. Juvenile may suggest less desirable characteristics, such as childishness, petulance, idleness, selfishness, or heedlessness ( juvenile behavior ), or it may refer simply to the years, up to the later teens, before legal responsibility: juvenile delinquency; juvenile court; juvenile books.

Example Sentences

Earlier this year, L Catterton invested in Hydrow, a younger rowing startup that recently raised $25 million.

From Fortune

They provide flood control and critical habitat for young fish and other marine creatures.

From Science News For Students

Venezuela’s own General Assembly declared that Maduro was out and they installed as president the young reformer Juan Guaidó.

From Freakonomics

If it’s a young guy who’s got sniffles, who’s you know 10 years old, gets tested, all of a sudden he’s a case and he’s gonna be better tomorrow.

From Washington Post

By young adulthood, these kids had no clue how to influence or lead others.

From Science News

The first two videos are teasers featuring two favorite cartoon characters for young girls, Dora the Explorer and Tinkerbell.

From The Daily Beast

Many young people are still shedding the ignorance of our parents.

From The Daily Beast

“The innocence of young people must be preserved at all costs,” said Glees.

From The Daily Beast

Professor Penelope Leach told The Daily Beast it was ludicrous to monitor young children in that way.

From The Daily Beast

But my sources, my young women and their mother, heroically held firm.

From The Daily Beast

“This is a distressing predicament for these young people,” thought Mr. Pickwick, as he dressed himself next morning.

From Project Gutenberg

I pictured him as slim and young looking, smooth-faced, with golden curly hair, and big brown eyes.

From Project Gutenberg

Five of the number had studied with Liszt before, and the young men are artists already before the public.

From Project Gutenberg

She stood, in her young purity, at one end of the chain of years, and Mrs. Chepstow—did she really stand at the other?

From Project Gutenberg

Two young lovers were exchanging their hearts' yearnings beneath the children's tent, which they had found unoccupied.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• budding
• inexperienced
• new
• youthful