childhood

[ chahyld-hood ]

/ ˈtʃaɪld hʊd /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for childhood on Thesaurus.com

noun

the state or period of being a child.

the early stage in the existence of something: the childhood of the human race.

OTHER WORDS FOR childhood

1 youth, boyhood, girlhood, school days.

See synonyms for childhood on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of childhood

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

OTHER WORDS FROM childhood

pre·child·hood, noun

Words nearby childhood

Childermas, Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came, Childers, childfree, child guidance, childhood, childing, childish, child labor, child labor laws, child labour

How to use childhood in a sentence

Children play an active part in shaping their social worlds, likely explaining in large part why these particular childhood temperaments were so closely aligned with later personality, the authors suggest.
‘The Origins of You’ explores how kids develop into their adult selves|Bruce Bower|September 16, 2020|Science News
The reasons are when girls stay home they often become victim to childhood marriages.
Malala Yousafzai tells the business community: Education is the best way to guard against future crises|Michal Lev-Ram, writer|September 15, 2020|Fortune
Despite haunting memories of a childhood visit to the boardwalk, Adelaide reluctantly takes her family on a Santa Cruz beach vacation.
FROM THE VAULTS – Straight, but not narrow|Brian T. Carney|September 11, 2020|Washington Blade
In 2018, competitor Lynn Munro brought oatmeal she milled herself and cooked it with water she harvested from the loch at her childhood home.
In Pursuit of the Perfect Bowl of Porridge|Clarissa Wei|September 11, 2020|Eater

Working with child psychologists and childhood development researchers, he wrote the book Design for Play in 1969.
Designing the essential and the unseen|Tate Ryan-Mosley|September 8, 2020|MIT Technology Review
My dad was a sailor, and all through my childhood he was away half of the time at sea, and to an extent I have a similar job.
Belle & Sebastian Aren’t So Shy Anymore|James Joiner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But that was probably the least unique thing about her childhood.
Jena Malone’s Long, Strange Trip From Homelessness to Hollywood Stardom|Marlow Stern|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And the actor says his childhood experience plays a critical role in his performance.
After The Fall: Introducing The Anti-Villain|Rich Goldstein|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
My parents are building a mausoleum for themselves in my childhood home.
I’m a Digital Hoarder|Lizzie Crocker|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Colfer's artistic callings share a common thread: they are deeply personal and rooted in a challenging childhood.
Chris Colfer on Writing, Acting, and the Pain of Being A Pop Culture Trailblazer|Oliver Jones|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is the dramatic impulse of childhood endeavouring to bring life into the dulness of the serious hours.
Children's Ways|James Sully
He sympathized with that movement which, during his childhood, culminated in the Cavite Conspiracy (vide p. 106).
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
The menace of a thunder-cloud approached as in his childhood's dream; disaster lurked behind the quiet outer show.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
When I am an old maid I am going to mount the platform and preach the training of the voice in childhood.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
Except, therefore, for an interval of about three years my childhood and youth were spent at Derby.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow

British Dictionary definitions for childhood

childhood

/ (ˈtʃaɪldhʊd) /

noun

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

childhood

OTHER WORDS FOR childhood

Origin of childhood

OTHER WORDS FROM childhood

Words nearby childhood

Words related to childhood

How to use childhood in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for childhood