Juvenile is an adjective meaning relating to young people, or not fully grown. It is used to describe people (especially children) or things associated with youth, such as juvenile court or juvenile behavior. In legal contexts it can denote a status involving youthful age and developmental considerations rather than criminal maturity.
- You often flatten the middle vowel, saying /ˈdʒuː.vən.aɪl/ with a reduced or mispronounced second syllable. Correction: keep /və/ as a clear, unstressed schwa and avoid turning it into /ɪ/ or /eɪ/. - Mispronounce the final /aɪl/ as /aɪl/ with an abrupt stop; instead, glide smoothly into /naɪl/ as one syllable; practice by combining /və/ + /naɪl/ quickly. - Stress misplacement: beginners sometimes say JU-ve-nile with heavy emphasis on the second syllable; correct by maintaining primary stress on the first syllable and reducing energy on the others. - Misreading /juː/ as a short /u/ or /ʊ/; ensure long /uː/ from the start, with your lips rounded and jaw slightly closed, then relax into /və/.
- US: rhotacized /r/ is not prominent in juvenile; focus on clear /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/ with a strong initial syllable. - UK: broad /ˈdʒuː.vən.aɪl/ with a slightly more centralized /ə/ for /ə/ in the second syllable and less rounding on /uː/. - AU: similar to US but with a lighter, quicker schwa; keep /uː/ long and the final /aɪl/ crisp. IPA references: US /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/, UK /ˈdʒuː.vən.aɪl/, AU /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/.
"The juvenile court handles cases involving minors."
"She wore a juvenile-sized jacket, but it fit just right."
"There are programs designed to steer juvenile offenders toward positive goals."
"The juvenile population showed surprising interest in the science exhibit."
Juvenile comes from the Latin juvenilis, from juvenis, meaning young. The Latin root juven- conveys youth, youthfulness, and vigor, and the suffix -ile forms adjectives indicating a characteristic. The word traveled into Old French as jovenil, then late Middle English, maintaining its sense of belonging to youth or relating to youths. Historically, the term has carried both neutral and evaluative connotations, sometimes contrasting the state of being young with adulthood. In modern usage, juvenile is most often encountered in legal, educational, and developmental contexts, where it denotes a status or behavior associated with youth rather than age alone. Over time, in English law and policy, juvenile has developed specialized senses: “juvenile court” focusing on minors and rehabilitation, and “juvenile offense” reflecting acts deemed inappropriate for emerging adulthood. The word’s semantic range now includes clinical, sociocultural, and literary uses that emphasize growth, immaturity, or transitional phases between childhood and adulthood.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Juvenile" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "Juvenile" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "Juvenile"
-ile sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Juvenile is pronounced with primary stress on the first syllable: /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/ in US and UK forms; Australian typically mirrors /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/. Start with a long JOO- sound (as in you), followed by a light schwa in the second syllable, and end with -nyle (/naɪl/, rhymes with Nile). Pay attention to the second syllable’s reduced vowel and the final -ile as a long I sound. Mouth: lips neutral, tongue high back for /uː/, then relaxed for /ə/, then high front for /aɪ/.
Common mistakes include misplacing stress (trying JU-ven-ile with two stiff syllables) and mispronouncing the final -ile as /ɪl/ or /iːl/ instead of /aɪl/. Another error is rounding or tensing the /uː/ too early, giving you a prolonged /u/ into the second syllable. Correct by keeping initial strong, use a crisp /ˈdʒuː/ then a quick, relaxed /və/ and a clear /naɪl/ ending. Practice by isolating /juː/ vs /dʒuː/ and ensuring the /naɪl/ is a single, flowing unit.
US/UK/AU share the same primary stress on the first syllable: /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/. The main differences lie in the mid-vowel: US often has a slightly more rhotic quality in the second vowel /ə/ or a reduced schwa; UK may preserve a broader /ə/ and faster vowel reduction in casual speech; AU tends to align with US but may feature a tad less vowel reduction in careful speech. Overall the /dʒ/ onset, /uː/ nucleus, /və/ schwa, and /naɪl/ final are consistent across varieties.
Difficulty comes from the trilateral vowel progression: /ˈdʒuː/ initial cluster, a reduced /ə/ in the second syllable, and a diphthong in the final /naɪl/. The combination of a long, tense /uː/ followed by a quick /ə/ before /naɪl/ requires precise timing and lip tension. Additionally, many speakers bias the middle vowel toward /i/ or mispronounce /juː/ as /ʤuː/ with heavier affrication. Focus on cleanly separating the three segments.
A distinctive feature is the seamless transition from the stressed initial /ˈdʒuː/ into the mid /və/ and the final /naɪl/. The /ˈdʒuː/ onset has a palatal affricate quality that can bleed into the following vowel if not separated. Keeping the syllables as discrete units in slow speech and then merging them as you speed up helps maintain clarity, especially when quickly saying “juvenile officer” or “juvenile court” in connected speech.
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- Shadowing: listen to a native speaker saying ‘juvenile’ in context (juvenile court, juvenile delinquent) and repeat in real time, matching intonation and rhythm. - Minimal pairs: compare /ˈdʒuː.və.naɪl/ with /ˈdʒuː.vən.laɪl/ (alternate /naɪl/ and /laɪl/) or /ˈdʒuː.və.nəl/ to sharpen vowel transitions. - Rhythm practice: say three-syllable chunks slowly: JU-ven-ile, then gradually increase speed while keeping the middle syllable unstressed. - Stress practice: emphasize only the first syllable; while saying phrases, maintain that primary stress on JU-. - Recording: use your phone to record yourself saying example sentences; compare to reference; note where your /ə/ or /naɪl/ may drift.
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