preadolescence
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of preadolescence
First recorded in 1925–30; pre- + adolescence
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"It seems like wherever you had your developmental life preadolescence and adolescence tends to be where your thermostat is tuned."
From Salon • Sep. 11, 2023
But the theme of perpetually arrested preadolescence has always been Disney’s first commandment.
From Time • Jun. 1, 2012
Whereas the humiliations of preadolescence are fodder for comedy in male characters — the squeaking voice, the pimples, the delayed growth spurt — in girls it’s an age often avoided.
From New York Times • Jun. 3, 2011
Even battling evil warlocks, when tween girls leave the page for the screen, they largely hew to an awkward caricature of preadolescence.
From New York Times • Jun. 3, 2011
The same principles should carry over into the intermediate, or preadolescence, age.
From How to Teach Religion Principles and Methods by Betts, George Herbert
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.