Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The time or state of being a child.
- noun The early stage in the existence or development of something.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun The state of being a child, or the time during which a person is termed a child; the time from birth to puberty; in a more restricted sense, the state or time from infancy to boyhood or girlhood; the period during which constant maternal care continues to be needed.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The state of being a child; the time in which persons are children; the condition or time from infancy to puberty.
- noun rare Children, taken collectively.
- noun The commencement; the first period.
- noun the state of being feeble and incapable from old age.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun uncountable The state of being a
child . - noun The
time during which one is a child, from betweeninfancy andpuberty . - noun by extension The early stages of
development of something.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun the time of person's life when they are a child
- noun the state of a child between infancy and adolescence
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Inasmuch as the symptoms of this latter come to differ from those of childhood proper, not abruptly, but gradually, the first years, at least, of youth will often come under our consideration, and I shall speak of this period of life as the _third period of childhood_.
The Sexual Life of the Child Albert Moll 1900
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If we consider how essential to such a masterpiece is inoculation of belief in the tender age of childhood, the system of missions appears no longer merely as the height of human importunity, arrogance, and impertinence, but also of absurdity; in so far as it does not confine itself to people who are still in the stage of _childhood_, such as the Hottentots, Kaffirs,
Essays of Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer 1824
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At the time, the term childhood obesity was not making headlines, but the running community, usually ahead of the curve when it comes to health issues, felt that kids were in need of an extra push to get out and work their bodies.
Young Runners Marc Bloom 2009
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The term childhood obesity is most often used to describe the rising problem of childhood overweight.
Baby Bites Bridget Swinney 2007
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The term childhood obesity is most often used to describe the rising problem of childhood overweight.
Baby Bites Bridget Swinney 2007
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Like many others of the past few generations, my introduction to the works of Lewis Carroll came to me in childhood from the hegemony of Walt Disney.
Alice in Wonderland 2009
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Like many others of the past few generations, my introduction to the works of Lewis Carroll came to me in childhood from the hegemony of Walt Disney.
Archive 2009-10-01 2009
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So much for the notion that “chubbiness” in childhood is something that is cute and just a sign of a “healthy” appetite.
Dr. Sharma’s Obesity Notes » Blog Archive » Obesity Promotes Musculoskeletal Problems in Kids 2009
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Increased fat in childhood is a known risk for being overweight in adulthood.
Bottle-feeding babies can lead to adult obesity, says study Sarah Boseley 2010
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I doubt that it gave any noticeable benefit - making up for what has been missed in childhood is very difficult.
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