noun
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a young person; child or youth
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a young animal, esp a horse
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of youngster
Explanation
Youngster is a good, generic way to talk about a person who's younger than you are, especially a child. If you babysit a neighborhood kid, you can describe him as a youngster. The noun youngster is a casual word meaning "child," and its synonyms include tyke and small fry. Older people sometimes use it to refer to adults who are younger than they are: "You youngsters can keep playing cards, but I'm going to bed!" Youngster has been around since the 1500's, when it replaced the earlier youngling.
Vocabulary lists containing youngster
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.
See Examples For:
A youngster sprang from the grass, running toward its mother, draped in what looked like a roomy shag carpet.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
With both players older and carrying more experience than Lewis-Skelly, minutes were hard to come by for the youngster.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
He is yet to play a senior game, but has been training with Ipswich's first team, with new boss Gary O'Neil saying he has been impressed by the youngster.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Arteta will still protect the highly rated youngster, but this season could be the time we see Dowman in the Arsenal first team on a regular basis.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
She did not know I had a youngster, for she checked her nest, saw the open mouths, and then she forgot me.
From "My Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Since the protests began, Modi has increasingly used Instagram -- the platform on which the CJP built much of its support -- to communicate directly with youngsters.
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
"Our hope is that Wales too will follow suit and protect our vulnerable youngsters," she said.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Now he has youngsters like Crow-Amstrong and McGonigle telling him they grew up watching him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
The youngsters were taken to hospital as a precaution and confirmed to be safe.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Instead of toys, books, or other things to amuse the youngsters, Count Olaf had provided a small pile of rocks.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
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.
