childhood

American  

[chahyld-hood] / ˈtʃaɪld hʊd /

noun

• childhoods
  plural

1. the state or period of being a child.

   Synonyms:

   girlhood, boyhood, youth

2. the early stage in the existence of something.

   the childhood of the human race.

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childhood British  

/ ˈtʃaɪldhʊd /

noun

1. the condition of being a child; the period of life before puberty

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prechildhood
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• childhoods
  plural

Etymology

Origin of childhood

before 950; Middle English childhode, Old English cildhād. See child, -hood

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

childhood childhoods

Many people in line in Marina del Rey chatted about their favorite Sanrio characters and exchanged childhood memories.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

Her daughter Shirley added: "Shirley has actually gifted me her childhood mug with her name on it."

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

Despite the economic challenges of her childhood and early career, she became wealthy, reportedly earning in 1938 the equivalent of about $4.5 million today.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

And if he did all the things that you wished he did, would you feel as excited about your childhood crush?

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

She could just stay in the house—her parents are gone on a weekend getaway to Kansas City and they’d never know—but the rules have been drilled into her since childhood.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Though the Womacks come from a line of West Virginian horse breeders, there was nothing Americana about the childhoods of BG, Zeimani and Kucha.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

As if their unconventional childhoods weren’t troubled enough, Asa and Yuru’s twinship comes with another heavy burden: saving the world.

From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026

Over one-third of American children and a staggering 53 percent of Black children will be subjected to a child protective services investigation at some point in their childhoods.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026

Since her cancer treatment, the princess has often spoken of the value of human contact and connection to help create happy, stable childhoods.

From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026

As though sheer willpower was enough to suspend her children’s childhoods until she could afford to have them living with her.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy