juvenile

Compared meaning: acting in a childish, unwise way (adjective).

比较义项：幼稚、不成熟的行为表现（形容词）。

• juvenile 本词

  More formal or literary than immature and childish, often describing behavior, humor or pranks that seem beneath someone's age; less common in everyday speech and can sound slightly bookish or disapproving.

  juvenile比immature和childish更正式书面，常用来形容与年龄不相称的行为、幽默或恶作剧；日常口语中较少使用，语气略显生硬，常带批评意味。

  Egging the neighbor's car was a juvenile prank that could have ended badly.

  往邻居车上扔鸡蛋是一个可能酿成大祸的幼稚恶作剧。

• immature

  The most general and neutral term for behaving in a way that suggests a lack of adult judgment or emotional development; commonly used for people, especially compared with their age or position.

  immature是最通用中性的词，表示缺乏与年龄或身份相称的判断力或情感成熟度，常用于形容人，尤其是与其年龄或地位相比较时。

  For someone his age, he's still remarkably immature.

  以他的年龄来说，他表现得还相当不成熟。

• childish

  Stronger and more critical than immature, implying silly, petty or unreasonable behavior; often used to scold or mock someone, especially in spoken English.

  childish比immature语气更强，批评意味更浓，暗示幼稚、小气或不讲道理的行为，常用于责备或嘲讽某人，尤其在口语中。

  Slamming the door because you lost was pretty childish.

  因为输了就摔门而去，实在是太幼稚了。

Juvenile, immature, and childish all describe acting too young for one's age. Immature is the most neutral. Childish is stronger, implying silly behavior. Juvenile is formal, describing humor beneath someone's age; its sense 'not yet an adult,' as of a young animal, is not compared.

这三个词在表示幼稚、不成熟的行为时意思相近，但语气和正式程度不同：immature最为中性常用，childish批评意味较强，juvenile则更正式书面。此处不比较juvenile表示未成年的、尚未发育成熟的另一义项（如幼年动物）。