immaturo

Immaturo is an Italian adjective that means not yet mature or ripe. It is used to describe things that have not reached full development, with common applications to fruit or crops that are not yet ripe, and it can also be used metaphorically to refer to people, ideas, or processes that are not fully developed or ready.

Etymology and form: the word comes from Latin immaturus, formed from in- “not” plus maturus “ripe.” In Italian it inflects for gender and number, with forms such as immaturo (masc. singular) and immatura (fem. singular). The masculine plural and feminine plural forms appear to agree with the nouns they modify (for example, frutti immaturi).

Usage and examples: in agriculture, frutti immaturi denotes fruit that has not yet reached ripeness. In everyday speech, it can describe behavior or stages of development that are still incomplete, as in un ragazzo immaturo or atteggiamento immaturo. The term is commonly contrasted with maturo, which means ripe or mature.

See also: immaturità, the noun form referring to immaturity; related terms include maturità (maturity) and maturare (to mature). Immaturo is widely understood in Italian-speaking contexts and provides a precise way to distinguish premature or underdeveloped states from fully developed ones.