teen
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
All four words refer to young people, but they differ in formality, range, and connotation. 'Teen' and 'teenager' are the most common everyday words for someone aged 13–19. 'Teen' is shorter and slightly more informal — you might use it in casual conversation ('He's just a teen') or in adjectival compounds ('teen drama'). 'Teenager' is the neutral, standard term suitable for any context, from family chats to news reporting. 'Adolescent' is more formal and clinical; it describes the developmental stage of puberty and is common in psychology, medicine, and education writing. 'Youth' has the broadest age range (often up to mid-20s) and can carry positive or idealistic overtones ('the youth of today'). In practice: 'A teenager borrows a car' sounds neutral; 'An adolescent borrows a car' sounds scientific; 'A youth borrows a car' could suggest a young person in a generic or slightly disapproving sense.
Common collocations
Etymology
'Teen' is a shortened form of 'teenager', which first became common in the mid-20th century. Both words trace back to the suffix '-teen' found in the numbers thirteen through nineteen. This suffix comes from Old English 'tīen' (ten), from Proto-Germanic '*tehun', and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root '*déḱm̥' meaning 'ten'. The concept of 'teenager' as a distinct social category emerged in the 1940s and 1950s, and the clipped form 'teen' followed soon after as a casual alternative.