youth; younger days
Refers to the period of one's youth, typically from adolescence through early adulthood. Often used in reminiscence or biographical contexts.
He spent his youth abroad.
I like listening to stories from my grandfather's younger days.
青春 often carries a more poetic or nostalgic nuance, emphasizing the vigor and passion of youth, while 青年時代 is a more neutral term for the period of being a young adult.
少年時代 refers specifically to one's boyhood or childhood, typically before adolescence, whereas 青年時代 covers the later youth period.
Compound of 青年 (young man, youth) and 時代 (era, period). The word straightforwardly means 'youth period'.