childish

adjective

child·ish | \ ˈchī(-ə)l-dish

Definition of childish

1 : of, relating to, or befitting a child or childhood childish desires for toys

2a : marked by or suggestive of immaturity and lack of poise a childish spiteful remark

b : lacking complexity : simple it's a childish device, but it works

c : deteriorated with age especially in mind : senile his parents … were both getting childish and needed care— Pearl Buck

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Examples of childish in a Sentence

She has a childish face. a letter written in childish scrawl He opened the gifts with childish delight. We're tired of their childish games. I find his humor very childish.

Recent Examples on the Web

There is plenty of criticism of Durant that has been childish and unfair. — Andrew Sharp, SI.com, "Kevin Durant Won't Leave the Warriors, But Maybe He Should," 8 June 2018 Acting childish doesn't have to mean throwing tantrums on the floor, either. — Natasha Burton, Woman's Day, "9 Marriage Expectations That Could Destroy Your Relationship," 13 Nov. 2018 The 1990s had a particularly childish version of this cycle, with the short-lived popularity of this toy. — Ryan Vlastelica, WSJ, "Test Your Smarts on…Market Manias," 7 Oct. 2018 At the same time, his behavior over Vantablack, the groundbreaking black pigment he’s monopolizing, has been selfish and childish. — Angela Chen, The Verge, "Which artists should SpaceX send to the Moon?," 18 Sep. 2018 Bayern Munich's number seven is also notorious for his childish pranks, and has been known to frequently pour beer over his teammates at the usual end of season title celebrations. — SI.com, "6 Players That Never Grew Up," 24 June 2018 Many would regard such conduct as childish if not pathetic. — Michael Mccann, SI.com, "The Potential Legal Consequences of Bryan Colangelo's Twitter Controversy," 30 May 2018 The Subaru seemed childish compared with the Scout, the engine going vroom vroom vroom. — David Gilbert, The New Yorker, "Fungus," 4 June 2017 Such tics may seem childish, but a lot of voters love this stuff. — Simon Shuster / Zurich, Time, "Steve Bannon Takes Trumpism to Europe and Gets a Rock Star's Welcome," 7 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'childish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

14 Jan 2019

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The first known use of childish was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for childish

childish

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of childish

: of a child or typical of a child; especially : having or showing the unpleasant qualities (such as silliness or lack of maturity) that children often have

See the full definition for childish in the English Language Learners Dictionary

childish

adjective

child·ish | \ ˈchīl-dish