Juniority

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The condition of being younger or less experienced than others implies a hierarchical status associated with youthfulness and limited authority within a group
2. Holding a subordinate position due to age or lesser expertise denotes a state defined by youth and a lack of seasoned knowledge in comparison to peers
3. The state of being younger or less experienced signifies a subordinate role that reflects youth and often correlates with diminished authority within a community

Etymology: "Juniority" is a plain formation: the adjective "junior" with the suffix "-ity," which turns an adjective into a noun for a state or quality. "Junior" itself comes from Latin "iunior," the comparative of "iuvenis" (young), so the word is literally "the condition of being the younger one." The base word's comparative form carries the sense of relative age: a junior is always junior to someone. The suffix "-ity" arrived in English through Old French and Latin, and it is attached to many adjectives to name a quality, as in "seniority" or "majority." Pairing it with "junior" produces a noun that describes a rank or standing defined by being newer or younger in a group rather than by age alone.

Synonyms: youth, inexperience

Antonyms: seniority, experience