often attributive
1
: a young bird just fledged (see fledge sense 1)
a bird feeding her fledglings
2
: an immature or inexperienced person
fledgling medical students
3
: one that is new
a fledgling company
Examples of fledgling in a Sentence
a female bird feeding her fledglings
at hockey he's still a fledgling and needs to work on his basic skating skills
Recent Examples on the Web
His brother, a former finance executive, is handling the business side of the fledgling operation.
—
Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
How Swift has anything to do with this windfall is a bit complicated, and goes all the way back to the major record labels’ original licensing agreements with Spotify from the late 2000s, which got the companies stock in the then-fledgling streaming service.
—Ethan Millman, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2026
The young Kennedy wanted Diana to pose for the cover of his fledgling magazine, George.
—Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 29 Apr. 2026
In return, prosecutors allege, Thao promised to secure lucrative city contracts for a fledgling housing company co-founded by David Duong and Juarez, as well as for the Duongs’ recycling firm, California Waste Solutions.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fledgling
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
How Swift has anything to do with this windfall is a bit complicated, and goes all the way back to the major record labels’ original licensing agreements with Spotify from the late 2000s, which got the companies stock in the then-fledgling streaming service.
—Ethan Millman, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2026
The young Kennedy wanted Diana to pose for the cover of his fledgling magazine, George.
—Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 29 Apr. 2026
In return, prosecutors allege, Thao promised to secure lucrative city contracts for a fledgling housing company co-founded by David Duong and Juarez, as well as for the Duongs’ recycling firm, California Waste Solutions.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fledgling
Cite this Entry
“Fledgling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fledgling. Accessed 5 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fledgling
noun
fledg·ling
ˈflej-liŋ 
1
: a young bird just fledged
2
: an immature or inexperienced person
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
