adolescents
adolescents — noun
- adolescentssingular
- adolescentsesplural
1. young people who are no longer children but not yet adults, roughly from 13 to 1
young people who are no longer children but not yet adults, roughly from 13 to 19 years old, whose bodies and minds are still growing and who are learning to be more independent.
At fourteen, Saira felt pressured by her best friends to steal make-up from a shop.
collocation: feel pressure (from friends / at school)
The Hualien youth centre runs a Wednesday club where adolescents like Apinya discuss family problems safely.
Scientists in Tokyo found that adolescents need about nine hours of sleep each night to stay awake in class.
A group of adolescents in Taipei started a project to clean up beach plastic.
文法句型
adolescents + verb (plural)
adjective + adolescents
用法筆記
The singular form 'adolescent' refers to one young person. Use 'adolescents' (plural) when talking about the age group as a whole or multiple individuals.
常見錯誤
adolescents — adjective
- adolescentspositive
- more adolescentscomparative
- most adolescentssuperlative
1. relating to the period between childhood and adulthood when a person's body and
relating to the period between childhood and adulthood when a person's body and personality develop, especially between the ages of 13 and 19.
Beatriz still keeps the diary she wrote during her adolescent years.
pattern: adolescent + noun (years / stage / phase)
During his adolescent growth spurt, Bilal grew nine centimetres in four months and had regular knee pain.
The book describes the ups and downs of an adolescent friendship in a small town.
Dr. Okafor runs a clinic that specialises in adolescent mental health and eating disorders.
文法句型
adolescent + noun
be + adolescent
用法筆記
Use this sense when describing features, experiences, or problems that belong to the teenage period. Do not mix with sense 2 (IMMATURE BEHAVIOUR), which criticises adult behaviour.
常見錯誤
2. describes an adult's speech or behaviour in a critical way, calling it silly, ch
describes an adult's speech or behaviour in a critical way, calling it silly, childish, or lacking emotional control.
Karim's adolescent jokes during the board meeting annoyed his senior colleagues.
pattern: adolescent + noun describing adult behaviour
The mayor called the heckling adolescent and refused to continue the debate.
Zuri found her roommate's habit of leaving dirty dishes everywhere rather adolescent for a 30-year-old.
When tenth-graders posted cruel comments about a classmate online, the principal called the act adolescent.
- mature
showing adult emotional control and good judgment
- responsible
acting in a sensible, adult way
文法句型
adolescent + noun
be + adolescent
find someone/something + adolescent
用法筆記
This sense carries a negative tone. It is not used to describe actual adolescents — use sense 1 (TEENAGE YEARS) instead. Common in complaints, reviews, and editorial comments.