noun, Psychiatry. 1. an inability to speak, due to a physical defect, conscious refusal, or psychogenic inhibition. Origin of mutism.
1 A new study finds girls are developing breasts earlier than ever before; American boys and girls are entering puberty about five years younger than they did in 1920.
âJust a generation ago, less than five percent of girls started puberty before the age of 8; today that percentage has more than doubled,â note Dr. Louise Greenspan and Dr. Julianna Deardorff in The New Puberty: How to Navigate Early Development in Todayâs Girls.