teenager
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of teenager
Explanation
If you're younger than 20 but older than 12, congratulations! You're a teenager! Teenagers are also known as teens or adolescents. Generally, teenagers have finished elementary school, are growing fairly quickly, and are in the last stage of development before they become official adults. As a teenager, the things you may do include graduating from high school, getting a driver's license, and working at a paid job. Before teenager was coined in the 1920s, the word was teener.
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.
Teenager Yamal put Barca ahead after an hour with a deflected effort from the edge of the box.
From Barron's • Jan. 28, 2026
Teenager Blades Brown fired a spectacular 12-under par 60 to join world number one Scottie Scheffler atop the leaderboard after two rounds of the PGA Tour American Express in La Quinta, California, on Friday.
From Barron's • Jan. 23, 2026
Teenager Iva Jovic sent two-time Grand Slam finalist Jasmine Paolini crashing out of the Australian Open on Friday with the seventh seed the biggest scalp of the young American's burgeoning career.
From Barron's • Jan. 23, 2026
Teenager Charalampos Kostoulas scores a stunning overhead kick to deny Bournemouth a rare away victory in the Premier League.
From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026
Surveyor at work: Teenager George Washington holds a surveying tool while a helper lets out distance-measuring chain and a slave looks on.
From "George Washington, Spymaster" by Thomas B. Allen
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.
