teen
English meaning: Teen
Definition
A teenager.
Example
“The film is aimed mainly at a teen audience.”
Another example: “As a teen, she dreamed of becoming a pop star.”
Usage — When, Where & How
Informal noun and adjective for a teenager (someone aged 13 to 19). Common in everyday and media English, often in compounds ('teen idol', 'teen drama'). Slightly more casual than 'teenager' or 'adolescent'.
Etymology & Origin
English — Origin & History
A 20th-century clipping of 'teenager', from 'teen' (the suffix in thirteen to nineteen) + 'age'; the suffix '-teen' derives from Old English 'tien' (ten).
Related Words
Common Collocations
- teen idol
- teen drama
- teen years
- troubled teen
- teen magazine
- tween and teen
Word Forms
teen (n & adj); teens (pl.); teenager (n); teenage (adj)
Word Tools
Literary Heritage
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
/To thine own self be true/
“Be honest with yourself — and as naturally as night follows day, you will be unable to be false to others.”
“I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?”
/I'm nobody! Who are you?/
“I am nobody — and that quiet anonymity is more honest than the noise of public fame.”
Images
CC-licensed · free to useVideo
Language information
- Language
- English
- English
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Indo-European
- Speakers
- 1.5B