boyhood
n. C / U B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈbɔɪˌhʊd// UK //bˈɔɪhʊd// boy·hood
n. the time in a person's life when they are a young boy. It describes the years before someone becomes an adult man.
n. the period or state of being a boy, typically spanning from early childhood to the onset of adolescence.
He spent his boyhood living in a small village by the sea.
Many of his novels are based on his boyhood experiences growing up in industrial London during the 1950s.
The memoir captures the bittersweet transition from the innocence of boyhood to the complex responsibilities of adulthood with remarkable emotional clarity.
From boy + -hood.
Usage
Uncountable when referring to the state or period in general; countable when referring to a specific person's experience of that time.