nonage

[non-ij, noh-nij]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR nonage ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the period of legal minority, or of an age below 21.

any period of immaturity.

RELATED WORDS

immaturity, childhood, infancy

Nearby words

Origin of nonage

1350–1400; late Middle English < Middle French (see non-, age); replacing Middle English nownage < Anglo-French nounage; Middle French as above

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for nonage

Imitation and forgery, which are a kind of literary vulgarity, were the school of Romanticism in its nonage.
Romance|Walter Raleigh
Huxley, if I remember rightly, asserted in his nonage that science would even afford us a newer and more enlightened morality.
Platform Monologues|T. G. Tucker
The youth in his nonage, and the gray-haired and very aged man were there.
The Iron Furnace|John H. Aughey
Had not he himself made anti-national treaties almost before he was out of his nonage?
Familiar Studies of Men and Books|Robert Louis Stevenson

I do not object, especially during the period of nonage, to a considerable degree of dependence and control.
Thoughts on Man|William Godwin

British Dictionary definitions for nonage

nonage

noun

law the state of being under any of various ages at which a person may legally enter into certain transactions, such as the making of binding contracts, marrying, etc

any period of immaturity

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

Word Origin and History for nonage

nonage

late 14c., "state of not being of age," from Old French nonage, from non- (see non-) + age (see age (n.)).