immaturity

/ˌɪməˈtjʊərəti/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌɪməˈtʃʊrəti/ (ame, ipa) · /"+/ (ame, mw)

immaturity — 名詞

1. ways of behaving or reacting that are not sensible or calm, seeming more typical

1.名詞B2
釋義

不成熟

行為幼稚，不符年齡

ways of behaving or reacting that are not sensible or calm, seeming more typical of a child than of an adult of that age

例句

Chitra's colleagues were frustrated by her immaturity during important team meetings.

Chitra 的同事對她在重要團隊會議上的不成熟感到沮喪。

possessive + immaturity as a quality attributed to a person

Throwing a tantrum because the restaurant was out of pasta showed Dan's immaturity.

因為餐廳沒有義大利麵就大發脾氣，顯示了 Dan 的不成熟。

gerund subject showing immaturity through a specific action

同義詞
  • childishness

    very close in meaning; immaturity is slightly broader and can also imply inexperience

  • puerility

    formal and less common; emphasises silliness rather than emotional steadiness

  • juvenility

    more neutral and less critical; can simply mean 'youthfulness' rather than a negative judgment

  • callowness

    emphasises lack of life experience and naive judgment more than childish behaviour

反義詞
  • maturity

    the direct opposite; describes sensible, calm, adult behaviour

  • wisdom

    broader; includes good judgment that comes from age and experience

文法句型

immaturity + of + noun/gerund

show/display + immaturity

用法筆記

Frequently used to criticise someone whose behaviour does not match the calm, sensible conduct expected from their age or position. The subject of the criticism is usually the person's actions or attitude, not the person directly (e.g. Her immaturity showed in the way she argued, not She is immaturity).

常見錯誤

❌He is immaturity.
✅He is immature.
💡immaturity is a noun, not an adjective; use 'immature' after 'be'.
❌Stop your immaturity!
✅Stop behaving so childishly!
💡immaturity is a quality, not typically used in direct commands.
❌I am tired of your immaturity attitude.
✅I am tired of your immature attitude.
💡use the adjective form before a noun.

2. the quality of having had too little experience in a particular area to handle s

2.名詞B2
釋義

欠缺經驗

缺乏某方面歷練

the quality of having had too little experience in a particular area to handle situations or make good decisions

例句

Ana's immaturity in financial matters led her to spend her whole savings on a sports car.

Ana 在財務方面的欠缺經驗，讓她把全部積蓄都拿去買了一輛跑車。

immaturity + in + [area] specifies the domain of inexperience

The young lawyer's professional immaturity showed when she failed to prepare for the hearing.

那位年輕律師的專業經驗不足，在聽證會前未做好準備時暴露無遺。

adjective + immaturity (e.g. professional, political)

同義詞
  • inexperience

    more neutral and broader; does not carry the same critical tone as immaturity

  • greenness

    informal; describes someone new and untrained in a role

  • rawness

    emphasises lack of polish or refinement from insufficient practice

反義詞
  • experience

    direct opposite; practical knowledge gained through time and practice

  • sophistication

    worldly knowledge and refined judgment

文法句型

immaturity + in + noun/gerund

political/financial/emotional + immaturity

用法筆記

Often modified by a preceding adjective or noun that specifies the area of inexperience (political immaturity, professional immaturity, emotional immaturity). This sense blends into sense 1 when the inexperience results in childish behaviour, but here the focus is on lack of practice or skill rather than emotional childishness.

常見錯誤

❌His immaturity of politics caused problems.
✅His political immaturity caused problems.
💡use the adjective form before immaturity, not 'of'.
❌She has immaturity.
✅She shows immaturity in ...' or 'Her immaturity in ... is clear.
💡immaturity is typically followed by a domain specification.

3. the condition of a living thing that has not yet finished growing or reached its

3.名詞B1
釋義

未發育完全

尚未完全成長

the condition of a living thing that has not yet finished growing or reached its full physical development

例句

The baby's lung immaturity was due to her being born two months early.

那名嬰兒的肺部未發育完全是因為他提早了兩個月出生。

noun + immaturity (e.g. lung immaturity) — medical context

The young apple tree's immaturity meant it would need another two years before it could bear any fruit.

那棵年輕蘋果樹尚未發育完全，還需要再等兩年才能結果。

同義詞
  • underdevelopment

    more technical; often used for organs, tissues, or infrastructure

  • unripeness

    specific to fruit that has not reached the edible stage

  • prematurity

    can overlap but usually refers to something happening too early rather than being undeveloped

反義詞
  • maturity

    the state of being fully grown or developed

  • ripeness

    specific to fruit being ready to eat

文法句型

noun + immaturity

physical/sexual + immaturity

用法筆記

Common in medical, biological, and agricultural contexts. The immaturity is typically specified by a premodifying noun (lung immaturity, bone immaturity, fruit immaturity, sexual immaturity) describing which part or aspect has not fully developed.

常見錯誤

❌The immaturity of the fruit is the reason it is sour.' (grammatically correct but unnatural in everyday speech)
✅The fruit's immaturity is why it tastes sour.
💡the possessive or noun-modifier form is more natural.
❌Sexual immaturity' used to mean sexually inexperienced (for people).
✅Sexual immaturity' refers to a biological stage, usually in animals or plants, not to human relationship inexperience.