[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/adult.html) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/) / [The school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/) / adult [← A](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/A/) # adult «adult» in Mova's school dictionary: **a grown-up person, not a child** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it. ### part of speech noun (adult, adults); adjective (adult) ### meaning for a pupil 1) An adult is a grown-up person, not a child. In many countries you are an adult from 18 years old. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#m1) 2) An adult animal or plant is one that is fully grown. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#m2) 3) Adult means for grown-ups, or acting in a sensible grown-up way. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#m3) 4) (casual) «Grown-up», «big people» (to small children) and «oldies» are everyday words for adults; «adulting» (slang) means doing boring grown-up jobs like paying bills. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#m4) 5) (euphemism) «Adult content» or «for adults only» means not for children; a pupil should leave it and tell a trusted adult. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#m5) 6) (formal) «Person of full age», «a person aged 18 or over», «guardian» and «responsible adult» are stiff official words. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#m6) ### sense in the lessons people counted apart from children; adult tickets cost more; in everyday life and safety: ask a trusted adult for help, an adult must be with you near water or roads; in science: a tadpole grows into an adult frog, a life cycle ends in an adult that lays eggs; in casual talk: «grown-ups», «adulting»; in the exam voice: «persons aged 18 years or over», «accompanied by a responsible adult»; phrases: «a trusted adult», «adult ticket», «young adult», «adults only» ### examples - An adult ticket costs $10 and a child ticket $5. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x1) - 12 adults and 20 children came. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x2) - How much did 3 adult tickets cost? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x3) - Each group has 1 adult. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x4) - If you feel unsafe, tell a trusted adult. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x5) - An adult must be with you at the swimming pool. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x6) - The caterpillar becomes an adult butterfly. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x7) - She was very adult about losing the game. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x8) - 2 grown-ups + 3 kids, adults are 10 bucks, kids 5, how much (casual) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x9) - ugh, adulting is hard, paid 3 bills today (casual, slang) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x10) - Act like an adult for once, you're 14, not 4. (rough) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x11) - Persons aged 18 years or over are charged 10 dollars; compute the total charge for 3 such persons and 4 minors at 5 dollars. (formal exam) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x12) - “There were several adults to-day,” he assured her with a faint flush; but when she tossed her head he had not a word of reproof for her. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/#x13) ### note Two prices: adults × adult price + children × child price. «An adult» (an before a vowel). Opposite: child, young; formal «minor» = a child under 18. Safety: a trusted adult is someone like a parent, teacher or carer; an adult who asks you to keep a secret from your parents is not safe. Trap: «adult» in science means fully grown, not 18 years old. Formal «persons aged 18 or over» = adults. ### In the corpora - [Most adults have some, like a mortgage or a car loan, and planned debt can be fine.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/8-borrowing-and-debt/1/) - [Many adults take a tablet every day to keep a long-term condition, like high blood pressure, under control.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/20-the-doctor-and-the-chemist/15/) - [Families make phone rules so meals are for talking, and adults find them hard to keep because phones are built to grab attention.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/29-screens-diets-sofas-and-late-nights/5/) - [Staying up too late makes adults tired the next day, and children's sleep matters even more for growing and learning.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/29-screens-diets-sofas-and-late-nights/17/) - [An election is when adults vote to choose their leaders and representatives; candidates send leaflets to explain their promises.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/31-votes-parties-and-the-people-in-charge/8/) ### Trees and pragmatics [Every meaning and example of «adult» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/adult/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.