Jailbait

//ˈd͡ʒeɪlbeɪt// noun, slang

noun, slang ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A sexually mature person below, or appearing to be below, the legal age of consent, who is regarded, usually by an adult, as being sexually attractive and/or seductive. slang, uncountable, usually

    ""The first time she modelled for Edward Weston, in March 1934, Charis Wilson knew she didn’t look good. At 20 she was “a piece of jailbait”, a mere child, especially with the stumpy plaits into which she sometimes twisted her hair.""

Example

More examples

"My ex's new girlfriend looks like jailbait."

Etymology

From jail + bait, from the fact that statutory rape can result, for the adult committing it, in incarceration.

Related phrases

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.