Basic Details
Word: Adolescent
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A young person who is changing from a child into an adult, usually between about 12 and 18 years old; a teenager. It is also used as an adjective.
Synonyms: teenager, youth, juvenile
Antonyms: adult
Word origin: Comes from Latin adolescere, to grow up.
How to Spell Adolescent
Syllables: ad - o - les - cent
Tricky part: The ending is scent, with an s and a c together, and there is only one l.
Watch out for: adolesent, adolecent, adolescant
Memory tip: The last part is spelt like the scent of a flower: adole + scent.
Usage Examples
Example 1: An adolescent needs plenty of sleep to grow well.
Example 2: The book is written for adolescent readers.
Example 3: My cousin is an adolescent now and wants to choose her own clothes.
Fun Fact
Adolescent and adult come from the same Latin verb. Adultus, its past participle, meant grown up, so an adolescent is someone still growing and an adult someone who has finished.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose its meaning:
1. adolescent 2. fluoresent 3. desendant 4. crecent
a) a person who comes from a certain ancestor
b) giving out a bright glowing light
c) a young person who is becoming an adult
d) the curved shape of the moon when it is thin
Show answer
c) a young person who is becoming an adult. Fluorescent, crescent and descendant all need an sc, just as adolescent has it.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word adolescent as used in the sentence:
The adolescent players in the squad trained hard alongside the senior team.
a) adult
b) youthful
c) teenage
d) juvenile
Show answer
a) adult. Adult describes someone fully grown, the stage after adolescence.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:
The lnaecodste years bring quick changes in height and voice.
a) adjacent
b) obsolescent
c) adolescent
d) decadent
Show answer
c) adolescent. Obsolescent needs a b and a second o and s, while adjacent and decadent are too short.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. An adolescent is most likely to be ____.
a) fifteen years old
b) two years old
c) a newborn
d) sixty years old
Show answer
a) fifteen years old
2. What is the stage of life called when someone is an adolescent?
a) adolescence
b) infancy
c) childhood
d) old age
Show answer
a) adolescence
