preteen
Americannoun
-
Also called preteenager. Also called preteener. a boy or girl under the age of 13, especially one between the ages of 9 and 12.
-
preteens, the years immediately preceding one's thirteenth birthday.
adjective
noun
Etymology
Origin of preteen
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.
A mother who sees other women as her direct competition isn’t just creepy; she’s dangerous — and the fact that, in this case, the other women are preteen girls makes it even worse.
From Salon • Jun. 4, 2026
Adora is also in possession of “one of the weirder jobs”: a fellowship from the partially paralyzed, mind-bogglingly rich descendant of a steel baron to provide moral training to his spoiled, acquisitive preteen twin sons.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
The Kim regime figures other nations won’t subject preteen girls to arduous training.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 11, 2026
The author describes being drawn to Lansbury as a preteen, seeing in her character a woman confidently creating stories and outmaneuvering powerful men in investigations.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 16, 2025
Well, sure, when he put it like that, I could see that I was never going to become a preteen real estate mogul if I wasted earnings by renting rather than buying.
From "Lawn Boy Returns" by Gary Paulsen
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.
