adjective
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not fully grown or developed
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deficient in maturity; lacking wisdom, insight, emotional stability, etc
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geography a less common term for youthful
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of immature
First recorded in 1540–50, immature is from the Latin word immātūrus unripe, hence, untimely. See im- 2, mature
Explanation
Use the adjective immature to describe something that is not fully grown: “Elizabeth rescued an immature sparrow that had fallen from its nest during the storm.” When used in a general sense, immature describes something in an early stage of development, such as an immature fruit tree or an immature political system. When applied to people, however, immature is often used to describe someone who behaves in a childish way. So if your 42-year-old brother spends the entire holiday weekend playing video games and then throws a temper tantrum when you ask him to help with the dishes, the word you’re looking for to describe him is probably immature.
Vocabulary lists containing immature
List 5
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Brown Girl Dreaming
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Made You Look: Synonyms for "Immature"
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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.
Sure, he’s obnoxious, immature, but he’s also now determined.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
The immature insects are believed to spend between four and 10 years underground feeding on plant roots before emerging as adults.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
A new study from the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience suggests that the answer may lie in how a rare group of brain cells, called immature neurons, responds to damage.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 3, 2026
While the Ivy League university grappled with its newly co-educational student body, Mr. Trudeau’s early cartoons played on the romantic failings of his stand-in, the immature Mike Doonesbury.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
In 1958 Mr. Fawks reported that a recent count of 59 eagles had included only one immature bird.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
