Prepubescent is about the time just before a child’s body starts puberty — before the voice drops, before periods start, before the body really begins to change into an adult’s. As an adjective it describes that stage: a prepubescent child, prepubescent years. As a noun it can mean the child themselves: the prepubescents in the class. Doctors and researchers use it a lot, because they need a clean line between “not yet in puberty” and “already in it.” Everyday talk often says preteen or just “kids that age” instead; prepubescent sounds more medical, more like a form. Though actually the line is messier than the word: puberty does not start on one birthday, and some children enter it earlier than others. The word does not mean “not yet a teenager” in a school sense, and it does not mean a baby. It is the stretch right before those body changes begin.

青春期前的；也可指青春期前的孩子