A twentysomething is a person in their twenties, somewhere between 20 and 29 years old. The term captures that distinct phase of life after being a teenager but before being a fully settled adult.

Twentysomethings are often figuring out big questions: What career path should I take? Where do I want to live? What kind of person do I want to become? Many are finishing college, starting first jobs, moving to new cities, or learning to manage money and responsibilities on their own for the first time.

You might hear someone say, “My twentysomething cousin just moved to Chicago to start her first teaching job,” or read about “the challenges facing twentysomethings in today's economy.”

As an adjective, twentysomething describes someone in that age range, like a “twentysomething actor” or a “twentysomething neighbor.”

It's a useful word for describing that important decade when people are building the foundations of their adult lives, making big decisions, and discovering who they really are.