puberty

Definition / meaning of puberty

The time of life when a child experiences physical and hormonal changes that mark a transition into adulthood. The child develops secondary sexual characteristics and becomes able to have children. Secondary sexual characteristics include growth of pubic, armpit, and leg hair; breast enlargement; and increased hip width in girls. In boys, they include growth of pubic, face, chest and armpit hair; voice changes; penis and testicle growth, and increased shoulder width.

Listed under:

Find More About 'puberty'

Source(s):

The Web site of the National Cancer Institute (http://www.cancer.gov/)

Leave a Comment

*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.