Teenager in Different Languages
Discover 'Teenager' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'teenager' is a significant term in our modern vocabulary, denoting the period between childhood and adulthood, typically associated with the ages of 13 to 19. This stage of life is marked by unique experiences, challenges, and rites of passage that shape individuals and societies. The teenager's cultural importance is undeniable, as they represent the future, innovation, and the ever-evolving trends of the world.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'teenager' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how various cultures perceive and address this life stage. For instance, in Spanish, a teenager is a 'adolescente,' while in French, they are called 'adolescent.' In Mandarin, the term is '十岁到十九岁的年龄' (shí suì dào shí jiǔ suì de niánlíng), which literally translates to 'the age from ten to nineteen.' In German, a teenager is a 'Jugendlicher' or 'Jugendliche' (female), and in Russian, 'подросток' (podrostok).
Exploring these linguistic nuances can enrich our understanding of cultural differences and similarities, fostering a more inclusive and connected global community. Keep reading to discover more fascinating translations of the word 'teenager' in various languages!
Teenager
Teenager in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | tiener | ||
| The word "tiener" in Afrikaans can also refer to a teenager's room or a teenager's lifestyle. | |||
| Amharic | ጎረምሳ | ||
| The word ጎረምሳ is derived from the Amharic verb "ቆረመሰ" (to be tall, to grow) and refers to the physical changes that occur during adolescence. | |||
| Hausa | saurayi | ||
| The term "saurayi" is also used to refer to preadolescent children and young adults. | |||
| Igbo | afọ iri na ụma | ||
| The word "afọ iri na ụma" can also refer to one who is on the threshold of adulthood or who is in the age group of 13-19. | |||
| Malagasy | zatovo | ||
| The word "zatovo" can also mean "young person" or "child". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | wachinyamata | ||
| The word "wachinyamata" in Nyanja (Chichewa) can also refer to young people or adolescents in general, not just those who are specifically teenagers. | |||
| Shona | kuyaruka | ||
| "Kuyaruka" is also a verb meaning "to grow bigger" or "to increase in size or quantity." | |||
| Somali | dhalinyaro | ||
| The word | |||
| Sesotho | mocha | ||
| The word “mocha” is an informal and somewhat archaic term that was formerly used in the Northern Cape to address teenagers. | |||
| Swahili | kijana | ||
| "Kijana" is related to the Kiswahili word "kijana" (young man) and the related names "Kijana Kwanza" (Young Man First) and "Kijana Wamalwa" (Young Man Wamalwa). | |||
| Xhosa | okwishumi elivisayo | ||
| The word "okwishumi elivisayo" means "a person who is between the ages of 13 and 19", and is derived from the words "ukwishuma" (to grow) and "elivisa" (a stage). | |||
| Yoruba | omode | ||
| The word "omode" can also refer to a child or a young person, not just a teenager. | |||
| Zulu | osemusha | ||
| "Osemusha" is the Zulu word for "teenager." It comes from the verb "okusema," which means "to grow into something else." | |||
| Bambara | funankɛnin | ||
| Ewe | ƒewuivi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ingimbi | ||
| Lingala | elenge mobali | ||
| Luganda | omuvubuka omutiini | ||
| Sepedi | mofsa wa mahlalagading | ||
| Twi (Akan) | ɔbabun | ||
Teenager in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مراهقة | ||
| The root of the word "مراهقة" in Arabic means "to hesitate" or "to rebel," reflecting the tumultuous nature of adolescence. | |||
| Hebrew | מִתבַּגֵר | ||
| The Hebrew מִתבַּגֵר translates more closely to "one who is maturing" or "one who is growing up". | |||
| Pashto | تنکي ځوان | ||
| The word "تنکي ځوان" ("teenager") in Pashto literally means "young person". | |||
| Arabic | مراهقة | ||
| The root of the word "مراهقة" in Arabic means "to hesitate" or "to rebel," reflecting the tumultuous nature of adolescence. | |||
Teenager in Western European Languages
| Albanian | adoleshent | ||
| The Albanian word "adoleshent" is derived from the Latin word "adolescēns". | |||
| Basque | nerabea | ||
| The Basque word "nerabea" originated from the Spanish word "nerve" and shares its meaning. | |||
| Catalan | adolescent | ||
| In Catalan, adolescent is equivalent to the English word "teenager" and has an alternate meaning "young man". | |||
| Croatian | tinejdžer | ||
| The word "tinejdžer" comes from the English word "teenager", which in turn comes from the words "teen" (meaning "thirteen") and "-ager" (a suffix meaning "one who is"). | |||
| Danish | teenager | ||
| I danese, "teenager" significa anche "adolescente" o "giovane adulto". | |||
| Dutch | tiener | ||
| In Dutch, "tiener" can also refer to someone in their twenties or thirties, reflecting a more gradual transition to adulthood in that culture. | |||
| English | teenager | ||
| The term "teenager" was first used in the 1940s to describe the unique physical and psychological characteristics of young people in their teens. | |||
| French | adolescent | ||
| The French word "adolescent" is derived from the Latin word "adolescere," meaning "to grow up" or "to mature." | |||
| Frisian | teener | ||
| "Teener" in Frisian is "tien(s)", with "tien" meaning "decade". | |||
| Galician | adolescente | ||
| The word "adolescente" evolved from the Latin word "adolescēns", meaning a young person approaching adulthood. | |||
| German | teenager | ||
| In German, "Teenager" can also refer to a person in their early twenties. | |||
| Icelandic | unglingur | ||
| The word "unglingur" in Icelandic is derived from "ungur" (young) and "ling" (person), meaning a "young person". | |||
| Irish | déagóir | ||
| The word "déagóir" is derived from the Irish word "déag", meaning "ten", and refers to a person in their tenth year of life. | |||
| Italian | adolescente | ||
| In Italian, "adolescente" originally meant "young slave" or "servant" and only later came to refer to a young person between childhood and adulthood. | |||
| Luxembourgish | teenager | ||
| The Luxembourgish word "Teenager" is derived from the English word "teenager" and has the same meaning. | |||
| Maltese | żagħżugħ | ||
| 'Żagħżugħ' is derived from the Arabic word 'shabab', which means 'youth'. It can also refer to a young man or a young person in general. | |||
| Norwegian | tenåring | ||
| The word "tenåring" is derived from the Norwegian word "ten" (teen) and the suffix "-åring" (yearling), meaning "one who is ten years old". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | adolescente | ||
| The word "adolescente" in Portuguese derives from the Latin word "adolescentia", meaning "youth" or "growing up." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | deugaire | ||
| The word 'deugaire' is derived from the Old Irish word 'óg', meaning 'young'. | |||
| Spanish | adolescente | ||
| In Spanish, "adolescente" comes from the Latin "adolescens," which originally meant "to grow up" and referred to young people between puberty and adulthood. | |||
| Swedish | tonåring | ||
| The word "tonåring" directly translates to "10-age-ing" as the years between 10 and 20 were previously grouped together. | |||
| Welsh | yn ei arddegau | ||
| The word 'yn ei arddegau' literally means 'in his/her teens' and is used to refer to someone between the ages of 13 and 19. | |||
Teenager in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | падлетак | ||
| The term "падлетак" also refers to a young deer. | |||
| Bosnian | tinejdžer | ||
| The Bosnian word "tinejdžer" is derived from the English word "teenager" and has the same meaning. | |||
| Bulgarian | тийнейджър | ||
| The word "тийнейджър" in Bulgarian is a loanword from English and preserves its original meaning and etymology. | |||
| Czech | teenager | ||
| In Czech, "teenager" also means "teen room" or "youth room." | |||
| Estonian | teismeline | ||
| "Teismeline" is an Estonian word derived from the prefix "teis", meaning "second", and the suffix "-meline", meaning "like" or "relating to". It literally translates to "second-like" or "relating to the second", implying the transitional stage between childhood and adulthood. | |||
| Finnish | teini-ikäinen | ||
| The word "teini-ikäinen" literally means "at the age of teens" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | tizenéves | ||
| "Tizenéves" is the Hungarian word for teenager, stemming from "tizen" (ten) and "év" (year). | |||
| Latvian | pusaudzis | ||
| The word "pusaudzis" is a derivative of "pusaugs," meaning "half-grown" or "half-adult." | |||
| Lithuanian | paauglys | ||
| The word "paauglys" is derived from the root "aug", meaning "to grow". | |||
| Macedonian | тинејџер | ||
| The Macedonian word "тинејџер" comes from the English word "teenager" and refers to a young person between the ages of 13 and 19. | |||
| Polish | nastolatek | ||
| The word "nastolatek" comes from the Polish words "naście" (meaning "about ten") and "lat" (meaning "years"). | |||
| Romanian | adolescent | ||
| In Romanian, "adolescent" is a noun referring to either a young man or woman. It's also used as an adjective, meaning "immature" or "unformed." | |||
| Russian | подросток | ||
| The word "подросток" can also refer to a specific stage of adolescence (ages 13-17) or a young person who is not yet fully mature. | |||
| Serbian | тинејџер | ||
| The word "тинејџер" can also refer to a member of the Boy Scout movement in Serbia, an auxiliary to the organization that is composed of teenagers but not officially part of it. | |||
| Slovak | tínedžer | ||
| The Slovak “tínedžer” comes from the English “teenager” and German “Teenager”, but the term “nást(r)očný” (literally: over ten) for a teenager already existed in the 19th century. | |||
| Slovenian | najstnik | ||
| The word "najstnik" is derived from the root "najst-", meaning "ten", and the suffix "-nik", indicating a person or thing associated with something. | |||
| Ukrainian | підліток | ||
| "Підліток" originally meant "under the age of the law" (until 17 years old) and was related to the Old Church Slavonic word "лЂто" ("summer") and thus originally meant "young". | |||
Teenager in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কিশোর | ||
| The word "কিশোর" can also mean "young" or "immature" in Bengali. | |||
| Gujarati | કિશોર | ||
| The word "કિશોર" also means "young" or "youthful" in Gujarati. | |||
| Hindi | किशोर | ||
| The word "किशोर" also means "young" and is often used to describe children who are not yet old enough to be considered adults, but who have passed the stage of early childhood. | |||
| Kannada | ಹದಿಹರೆಯದ | ||
| The term is a compound in Kannada deriving from the base-ten system, referring to the ages "(ten-)four to (ten-)nine" | |||
| Malayalam | കൗമാരക്കാരൻ | ||
| Marathi | किशोर | ||
| The Marathi word "किशोर" also refers to the moon, especially in its waxing or waning phase, and can mean "a youth" or "young person" in a literary sense. | |||
| Nepali | किशोर | ||
| "किशोर" also means someone who is young and immature | |||
| Punjabi | ਕਿਸ਼ੋਰ | ||
| The word "ਕਿਸ਼ੋਰ" is derived from Sanskrit and literally means "young person" or "adolescent", but is typically used to refer to someone between the ages of 13 and 19. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | යෞවනයා | ||
| The word "යෞවනයා" can also refer to a person in their early 20s. | |||
| Tamil | டீனேஜர் | ||
| டீனேஜர் (Teenager) is a term derived from the English language which means a person aged 13-19. | |||
| Telugu | యువకుడు | ||
| The word "యువకుడు" (teenager) can also mean "young person" or "youthful person" in Telugu. | |||
| Urdu | نوعمر | ||
| The Urdu term "نوعمر" (pronounced "naumabhir") literally translates to "new age" and refers to young people who are entering adulthood. | |||
Teenager in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 青少年 | ||
| The word "青少年" can also mean "adolescent" or "young person". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 青少年 | ||
| 青少年 literally means "young and green" (青 and 少 mean "green" and "young") | |||
| Japanese | ティーンエイジャー | ||
| ティーンエイジャー is derived from the English word "teen" and the Japanese suffix "-ājaa" (アージャー), which is used to indicate a person. | |||
| Korean | 십대 | ||
| The word "십대" (teenager) is derived from the Chinese characters "十" (ten) and "대" (age). | |||
| Mongolian | өсвөр насны | ||
| The word "өсвөр насны" derives from the Mongolian verb "өсөх" (to grow) and the noun "нас" (age), denoting the period of adolescent growth. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဆယ်ကျော်သက် | ||
Teenager in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | remaja | ||
| Remaja derives from the Sanskrit word 'rājyaputra', which means 'prince' or 'son of a king'. | |||
| Javanese | taruna | ||
| The word "taruna" in Javanese also refers to a young knight or warrior, showcasing the association between youth and bravery in Javanese culture. | |||
| Khmer | ក្មេងជំទង់ | ||
| Lao | ໄວລຸ້ນ | ||
| The word "ໄວລຸ້ນ" is derived from the Sanskrit word "taruṇa", meaning "young" or "youthful". | |||
| Malay | remaja | ||
| In Indonesian, "remaja" can also mean "young person" or "adolescent". | |||
| Thai | วัยรุ่น | ||
| "วัยรุ่น" comes from the Thai words "วัย" (age) and "รุ่น" (generation), and also means "youth" or "young adult". | |||
| Vietnamese | thiếu niên | ||
| The word "thiếu niên" also means "youth" or "juvenile" in Vietnamese and comes from the Chinese characters 少年. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | binatilyo | ||
Teenager in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | yeniyetmə | ||
| "Yeniyetmə" is derived from the Persian words "yeni" (new) and "yetmə" (to become), meaning "newly ripened." | |||
| Kazakh | жасөспірім | ||
| The Kazakh word "жасөспірім" (jasóspirim) literally means "young hero" and can also refer to a person of outstanding qualities. | |||
| Kyrgyz | өспүрүм | ||
| The word "өспүрүм" also means "young person" or "young man" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | наврас | ||
| 'Наврас' is also used to refer to a young man who is coming of age and preparing to take on adult responsibilities. | |||
| Turkmen | ýetginjek | ||
| Uzbek | o'spirin | ||
| The word "o'spirin" in Uzbek can also refer to "a young person who is in the process of becoming an adult" | |||
| Uyghur | teen | ||
Teenager in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻōpio | ||
| 'Ōpio also means 'young' and can refer to any young person or animal. | |||
| Maori | taiohi | ||
| The word "taiohi" in Maori also refers to a group of young people or a youth gang. | |||
| Samoan | talavou | ||
| "Talavou" in Samoan also refers to a person who is between childhood and adulthood. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | binatilyo | ||
| Binatilyo, originating from the Spanish word "binatan" meaning "twice," represents the dual nature of adolescence. | |||
Teenager in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | wayna tawaqu | ||
| Guarani | mitãrusu | ||
Teenager in International Languages
| Esperanto | adoleskanto | ||
| "adoleskanto" is derived from the Latin word "adolescens", which means "young person" or "youth". | |||
| Latin | teenager | ||
| Derived from "teen" and "-ager" (one that acts), from Old English "tīene" + "-agere" | |||
Teenager in Others Languages
| Greek | νεαρός | ||
| The word "νεαρός" is derived from the Greek root "νέος," meaning "new" or "young," and refers to a period of transition and growth. | |||
| Hmong | hluas | ||
| The word "hluas" can also refer to a young person who is not yet married. | |||
| Kurdish | ciwan | ||
| The word "ciwan" in Kurdish can also refer to a young man or a young woman. | |||
| Turkish | genç | ||
| The word "genç" in Turkish derives from the Persian word "javan" meaning "young". | |||
| Xhosa | okwishumi elivisayo | ||
| The word "okwishumi elivisayo" means "a person who is between the ages of 13 and 19", and is derived from the words "ukwishuma" (to grow) and "elivisa" (a stage). | |||
| Yiddish | צענערלינג | ||
| The word 'צענערלינג' ('teenager') is derived from the Yiddish word 'צענ' ('ten') and the German suffix '-erling' ('young person'). | |||
| Zulu | osemusha | ||
| "Osemusha" is the Zulu word for "teenager." It comes from the verb "okusema," which means "to grow into something else." | |||
| Assamese | কিশোৰ | ||
| Aymara | wayna tawaqu | ||
| Bhojpuri | किशोर के बा | ||
| Dhivehi | ފުރާވަރުގެ ކުއްޖެކެވެ | ||
| Dogri | किशोरी | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | binatilyo | ||
| Guarani | mitãrusu | ||
| Ilocano | tin-edyer | ||
| Krio | tɛn ia ol titi | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | هەرزەکار | ||
| Maithili | किशोर | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯇꯤꯅꯑꯦꯖꯥꯔ ꯑꯣꯏꯕꯥ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | tleirawl a ni | ||
| Oromo | dargaggeessa umrii kurnanii keessa jiru | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କିଶୋର | ||
| Quechua | wayna sipas | ||
| Sanskrit | किशोरः | ||
| Tatar | яшүсмер | ||
| Tigrinya | መንእሰይ | ||
| Tsonga | muntshwa wa kondlo-a-ndzi-dyi | ||