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teen

/tin/

/tin/

IPA guide

Other forms: teens

Are you between the ages of 13 and 19? If so, you're a teen! Teen is a less-formal way to say teenager.

You can use this informal word as a noun or an adjective, so you might talk about teen literature, teen rebellion, teen movies, or teen romance—anything that has to do with teenagers. If you're 11, you may be eagerly anticipating your teen years; if you happen to be 37, you certainly remember being a teen, either fondly or not. The teen years are also known as adolescence.

Definitions of teen
  1. noun
    a juvenile between the onset of puberty and maturity
    synonyms: adolescent, stripling, teenager
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    types:
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    chebab
    a Palestinian juvenile 10-15 years old who fights against the Israelis
    mod
    a British teenager or young adult in the 1960s; noted for their clothes consciousness and opposition to the rockers
    pachuco
    a Mexican-American teenager who belongs to a neighborhood gang and who dresses in showy clothes
    punk, punk rocker
    a teenager or young adult who is a performer (or enthusiast) of punk rock and a member of the punk youth subculture
    rocker
    a teenager or young adult in the 1960s who wore leather jackets and rode motorcycles
    young buck, young man
    a teenager or a young adult male
    type of:
    juvenile, juvenile person
    a young person, not fully developed
  2. adjective
    being of the age 13 through 19
    “the teen years”
    synonyms: adolescent, teenage, teenaged
    immature, young
    (used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
Pronunciation
US

/tin/

UK

/tin/

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