少年|しょうねんshounen[0]heiban (flat)

1. nounboy
   少年しょうねんは木きに自分じぶんの名前なまえを刻きざんだ。↗

   The boy carved his name on the tree.
2. nounjuvenile; childusu. in legal contexts

• Synonym男の子おとこのこNeutralThe everyday word for a boy, covering babies through teens; 少年 is more written and mainly refers to boys from elementary school to their teens.
• Synonym男児だんじWrittenWritten style, typical of news and statistics as in 「5歳の男児」; it can refer to very young boys, and unlike 少年 it can also mean a manly man.
• Synonym童子どうじWrittenA written, old-fashioned word for a child, seen in Buddhist and legendary tales, also a boy in service to nobles; everyday speech prefers 「男の子」.
• Synonym小僧こぞうCasualColloquial for a young monk or apprentice boy, also a scornful 'brat' aimed at boys; 少年 is neutral, with no praise or blame.
• Synonym男子だんしNeutralMeans boys or males; used to distinguish the male side in schools and sports, as in 「男子生徒」.
• Synonym坊やぼうやCasualAn affectionate way to address a little boy, also sarcastic for a naive young man; usually younger than 少年.
• Synonym童男おぐなWrittenAn archaic word for a little boy found mainly in classical texts and virtually unused today; say 「男の子」 or 「少年」 instead.
• Related若者わかものNeutralYoung people of either sex; it can include teenagers but usually means the younger generation, while 少年 mainly means underage boys.
• Related１０代じゅうだいNeutralThe 10-to-19 age bracket, either sex, stressing age rather than sex; 少年 is mainly about boys.
• RelatedティーンエイジャーNeutralA loanword for 13-to-19-year-olds of either sex, common in fashion and marketing talk; 少年 is mainly about boys.
• Related子こNeutralA general word for a child or one's offspring, also usable for girls and young women; 少年 centers on boys of boyhood age.
• Related青少年せいしょうねんWrittenA written collective term for young people of both sexes, typical of law and policy, as in 「青少年保護」.
• Related青二才あおにさいCasualA colloquial put-down for a green, immature young man, used to insult or to be self-deprecating; 少年 has no such negative tone.
• Related童わらべWrittenA literary, old-fashioned word for a small child, found in children's songs and classics; it suggests a younger age than 少年.
• RelatedティーンCasualA colloquial short form of 「ティーンエイジャー」, common in fashion and magazine language and covering both sexes.
• Related若い衆わかいしゅCasualA colloquial word for young men or lads, also young shop hands, with a streetwise, working-world flavor; 少年 stays neutral and objective.
• Antonym少女しょうじょNeutralThe female counterpart: a young girl of roughly the same age range as 少年, opposed to it in sex.
• Antonym老人ろうじんNeutralAn elderly person; stands at the age opposite of 少年 — one old, one young.
• Antonym乙女おとめWrittenA written word for a maiden or girl with pure, romantic overtones, common in literature and lyrics; opposed to 少年 in sex.

In writing and news, 少年 is the standard word for a boy from about elementary school to the teens; in everyday speech say 「男の子」. For young people of either sex use 「若者」, or 「青少年」 in law and policy; to mark the male side in school or sports use 「男子」. The rest are special-purpose: written or archaic (「男児」「童子」「童男」「童」), age-bracket terms (「１０代」「ティーンエイジャー」「ティーン」), or colloquial with added nuance (「青二才」「若い衆」「小僧」「坊や」). Antonyms: 「少女」/「乙女」 by sex, 「老人」 by age.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 年ねんの若わかい人ひと。青年せいねんよりも年少ねんしょうで、主おもに男子だんしを指さす。
2. 男の子おとこのこ。男児だんじ。
3. （児童福祉法じどうふくしほう）小学校しょうがっこう就学しゅうがくの始期しきから、満まん18歳さいに達たっするまでの者もの。
4. （少年法しょうねんほう）20歳さいに満みたない者もの。
5. （国民体育大会こくみんたいいくたいかい）大会たいかい開催かいさい年ねん（冬季とうき大会たいかいは前年ぜんねん）の4月がつ1日ついたち現在げんざい、15歳さい以上いじょう18歳さい未満みまんの者もの。日本スポーツ協会にほんすぽーつきょうかいが特とくに認みとめる場合ばあい、下限かげんを14歳さいとする。