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

But there were moments of his performance in which I recognized a young version of my own childhood monster.

From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026

A nomadic childhood and life among migrant communities in Newport's Docklands had drawn him towards documenting lives beyond the mainstream.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

The Philippines has struggled to restore routine childhood immunisation rates after years of plummeting coverage, which contributed to a polio resurgence in 2019 and recurring measles outbreaks.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

Given his walking difficulties from childhood polio, I was advised never to insert myself between him and a wall.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

The sight of a stern judge demanding a book from him had been the stuff of his nightmares since childhood.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

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

Rothwell's role in Coronation Street had been written with him in mind - as the creator Tony Warren had worked with him during their childhoods on BBC Radio's Children's Hour.

From BBC ● May 14, 2026

So many people in Village—including Matty—had sad memories of their childhoods.

From "Messenger" by Lois Lowry