Definition

1. Noun:
   • Youth, early youth: "Niên thiếu" refers to the period of life when one is young, typically from childhood to adolescence. It emphasizes the tender, formative years.
   • Young age: It can also denote the state or condition of being young and immature.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Anh ấy đã học vẽ từ thời niên thiếu. (He learned to paint from his youth / from a young age.)
  • Những kỷ niệm thời niên thiếu thật đẹp. (Memories from one's youth are beautiful.)
  • Tâm hồn niên thiếu của trẻ em rất trong sáng. (The young souls of children are very pure.)

Advanced Usage

• "Tuổi niên thiếu": A slightly more explicit phrase meaning "the age of youth".
  • Tuổi niên thiếu là khoảng thời gian quan trọng để hình thành nhân cách. (The age of youth is an important period for character formation.)

Variants and Related Words

• Thiếu niên (noun): Adolescent, teenager. This is a related but distinct term focusing more on the adolescent stage.
  • Câu lạc bộ dành cho thiếu niên. (A club for teenagers.)
• Thiếu thời (noun): Childhood, early youth. A close synonym, often used interchangeably with "thời niên thiếu".
  • Những câu chuyện cổ tích gắn liền với tuổi thiếu thời. (Fairy tales are associated with childhood.)

Synonyms

• Tuổi trẻ: Youth (a more general term for being young).
• Tuổi thanh xuân: Youth, prime of youth (often with a more vibrant, energetic connotation).
• Thời trẻ: One's young days.

Notes on Meaning

• "Niên thiếu" is a literary and somewhat formal term. In everyday conversation, phrases like "hồi nhỏ" (when I was small) or "hồi còn trẻ" (when I was young) are more common.
• It primarily functions as a noun, often appearing in the fixed phrase "thời niên thiếu" (one's youth, the time of youth).
• The word carries a nostalgic or reflective tone, often used when looking back fondly or thoughtfully on one's early years.

1. Young, tender
   • Thời niên thiếu
     The tender age, the young days