puppet

noun

pup·​pet ˈpə-pət 

often attributive

1

a

: a small-scale figure (as of a person or animal) usually with a cloth body and hollow head that fits over and is moved by the hand

b

: marionette

2

: doll sense 1

3

: one whose acts are controlled by an outside force or influence

a puppet ruler

puppetlike

ˈpə-pət-ˌlīk 

adjective

Synonyms of puppet

• doll

Examples of puppet in a Sentence

a dictator who was perceived as being an American puppet

gave her a puppet with strings for a gift

Recent Examples on the Web

The Godfather with a puppet-master’s hand clutching a control bar that looks, ominously, like a cross. — Literary Hub, 7 Aug. 2026

Filmed during Covid, Vaught and Funk crammed themselves into a small bathroom to film a scene where a puppet bursts out of the toilet to throttle Vaught. — Tania Azhang, Sacbee.com, 6 Aug. 2026

While trying to save one of Afton’s victims, a young girl named Charlotte dies and her vengeful spirit possesses Marionette, a creepy puppet animatronic. — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Aug. 2026

That issue has become the dominant one in the primary, as El-Sayed paints Stevens as a puppet for Israel and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which has spent $30 million on her behalf. — Philip Elliott, Time, 3 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English popet youth, doll, from Middle French poupette, diminutive of *poupe doll, from Vulgar Latin *puppa, alteration of Latin pupa

First Known Use

1538, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing puppet

• glove puppet
• hand puppet
• puppet regime
• sock puppet

Kids Definition

puppet

noun

pup·​pet ˈpəp-ət 

1

: a doll moved by hand or by strings or wires

2

: doll sense 1

3

: a person or a government whose acts are controlled by an outside force or influence