prepubescent

American  

[pree-pyoo-bes-uhnt] / ˌpri pjuˈbɛs ənt /

adjective

1. of or relating to the years immediately preceding puberty, prepubertal.

---

noun

1. a prepubescent boy or girl.

prepubescent British  

/ ˌpriːpjuːˈbɛsənt /

noun

1. a person who has not yet reached puberty

---

adjective

1. not yet having reached puberty

Other Word Forms

• prepubescence
  noun

Etymology

Origin of prepubescent

First recorded in 1900–05; pre- + pubescent

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prepubescent

Optimal bone health starts in utero, but our prepubescent years are key to setting our skeleton up for later life.

From Salon ● May 1, 2024

For prepubescent children, “there is parental support, but no testing, no treatment, not anything,” officials said in a written statement.

From Seattle Times ● May 12, 2023

Here, a prepubescent girl with a body not unlike Degas’s little dancer, is shown clothed in and surrounded by gold, standing in the dusty yard of a decrepit house.

From New York Times ● Feb. 6, 2020

The 13-year-old Tremblay, who starred in the breakout hits “Wonder” and “Good Boys” and first made his name in the Oscar-nominated “Room,” appears as Bradley Trevor, one of several prepubescent victims of the True Knot.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2019

Such public displays of affection can be embarrassing to a prepubescent girl like me who is not accustomed to being in the company of two married people who like each other.

From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg