youngster

Compared meaning: a young person (noun).

比较义项：孩子，未成年人（名词）。

• kid

  Very informal, everyday word for a child, used mostly in casual speech; not used in legal or formal writing.

  非常口语化，是日常口语中说“小孩”最常用的词，不用于正式或法律文本。

  The kids next door play basketball every afternoon after school.

  隔壁的孩子们每天放学后都会打篮球。

• child

  Neutral, standard term for a young person; the default word for formal, academic and everyday contexts alike.

  中性、标准的“孩子”一词，正式、学术和日常场合都可以使用，是默认用词。

  As a child, she loved reading fairy tales before going to bed.

  小时候，她喜欢在睡前读童话故事。

• minor

  Formal, legal term emphasizing that someone is under the age required by law, common in legal, official or policy contexts.

  正式的法律用语，强调某人未达到法律规定的年龄，常见于法律、官方或政策语境。

  Selling alcohol to a minor is illegal in every state.

  向未成年人出售酒精在每个州都是违法的。

• youngster 本词

  Informal but slightly more descriptive or affectionate word, often used in narrative or journalistic writing, and can include older children or early teens.

  非正式但略带描写性或亲切感的词，常见于叙述或新闻写作，也可以指年纪稍大的孩子或十几岁的少年。

  The youngster proudly showed off his new bicycle to the neighbors.

  这个小孩自豪地向邻居们展示他的新自行车。

Kid, child, minor, and youngster all mean a young person. Kid is very informal, used in casual speech. Child is the neutral, standard word for any context. Minor is a formal, legal term for someone underage. Youngster is informal but descriptive, often in news writing.

这四个词在这个意义上都表示“孩子、年轻人”，但语域和正式程度不同：kid 很口语化，child 是最中性通用的说法，minor 是法律或正式场合的用语，youngster 略带描写色彩，也可以指年纪稍大的孩子。这里不比较 minor 的“较小的，次要的”这一义项，也不比较 kid 作动词表示“开玩笑”的用法。