prepubescent

[ pree-pyoo-bes-uhnt ]

adjective

1. of or relating to the years immediately preceding puberty, prepubertal.

noun

1. a prepubescent boy or girl.

prepubescent

/ ˌpriːpjuːˈbɛsənt /

noun

1. a person who has not yet reached puberty

adjective

1. not yet having reached puberty

Other Words From

• prepu·bescence noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of prepubescent¹

First recorded in 1900–05; pre- + pubescent

Example Sentences

Decisions about abusive sexual imagery, for example, can rest on an assessment of whether a naked child in an image appears adolescent or prepubescent, based on comparison of hip bones and pubic hair to a medical index chart.

From ProPublica

A new law in Tennessee bans such hormones for prepubescent children.

From Science News

Polette, a truck driver, married Bacot’s mother in 1992, and started grooming her immediately, insisting he put body lotion on her prepubescent body and on watching her bathe, according to her memoir.

From The Daily Beast