Which term denotes sexual activity between an adult and a person under 18?

Which term denotes sexual activity between an adult and a person under 18?

• A. Statutory rape
• B. Acquaintance rape
• C. Rape
• D. Sexual abuse

Answer: (A)

Sex with a minor is illegal in many places because a person under 18 cannot legally consent to sexual activity. When an adult engages in sex with someone below the age of consent, the act is called statutory rape—the focus is on the age-based lack of legal capacity to consent, not on whether there was coercion or force. This distinguishes it from rape, which centers on non-consent through force or coercion, and from acquaintance rape, which is rape committed by someone the victim knows. Sexual abuse is a broader term that covers various exploitative or harmful sexual acts, often involving a minor, but the specific term for sex between an adult and someone under 18 is statutory rape.

Sex with a minor is illegal in many places because a person under 18 cannot legally consent to sexual activity. When an adult engages in sex with someone below the age of consent, the act is called statutory rape—the focus is on the age-based lack of legal capacity to consent, not on whether there was coercion or force. This distinguishes it from rape, which centers on non-consent through force or coercion, and from acquaintance rape, which is rape committed by someone the victim knows. Sexual abuse is a broader term that covers various exploitative or harmful sexual acts, often involving a minor, but the specific term for sex between an adult and someone under 18 is statutory rape.