age of consent

Definition of age of consent

Noun

age of consent

1. (law) The age at which a person is legally considered to be mature enough to engage willingly in sexual intercourse.

Note: The term is used to indicate the age at which it is no longer a crime for someone else to engage in consensual sexual intercourse with the person who is still younger than the age of consent, as they are considered statutorily a victim of a crime, because by law they are considered incapable of giving permission to someone else to engage in sexual intercourse with them.

See also

• age of majority
• have sex
• statutory rape
• jailbait