Link Centre Dictionary

pubescent

pu·bes·cent

UK/pjʊˈbɛs(ə)nt/ fairly common

adjective

1.

(of animals especially human beings) having arrived at the onset of puberty (the age at which sex glands become functional) but not yet fully mature

  • “the budding breasts of a pubescent girl and the downy chin of pubescent boy”
Similar
2.

covered with fine soft hairs or down

  • “downy milkweed seeds”
Synonyms
Similar

Origin

From Middle French pubescent, from Latin pubescens (“to become hairy, downy, or an adult”).

Phrases

  • of age
  • pubescent oak

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.