puerile

1 of 2

adjective

pu·​er·​ile ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-əl 

-ˌī(-ə)l

1

: juvenile

2

: childish, silly

puerile remarks

puerilely

ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-ə(l)-lē 

-ˌī(-ə)l-lē

adverb

puerility

ˌpyu̇(-ə)r-ˈi-lə-tē 

noun

puerility

2 of 2

noun

pu·​er·​il·​i·​ty ˌpyu̇əˈrilətē 

-lətē, 

-i

plural -es

1

a

: the quality or state of being a child

specifically : the status under civil law of a child between infancy and puberty defined as from 7 to 14 years of age in boys and from 7 to 12 years of age in girls

b

: immaturity, childishness

the ballet comic in its puerility and ugliness

—Arnold Bennett

2

: an act, instance, or product of an immature mind

where he has committed the puerility of employing more words than are necessary, he now has the one correct word

—College English

pettiness, juvenilities, and … puerilities become not a great assembly like this

—John Adams

Did you know?

Puerile may call to mind qualities of youth and immaturity, but the term itself is no spring chicken. On the contrary, it's been around for more than three centuries, and its predecessors in French and Latin, the adjectives puéril and puerilis, respectively, are far older. Those two terms have the same basic meaning as the English word puerile, and they both trace to the Latin noun puer, meaning "boy" or "child." Nowadays, puerile can describe the acts or utterances of an actual child, but it more often refers (usually with marked disapproval) to occurrences of childishness where adult maturity would be expected or preferred.

Synonyms of puerile

Adjective

• childish
• immature
• adolescent
• juvenile

Examples of puerile in a Sentence

Adjective

told the teenagers that such puerile behavior would not be tolerated during the ceremony

allowed the company to be taken over by a bunch of puerile whippersnappers fresh out of business school

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The broadest of comedies, the film’s often puerile humor is driven by an endless stream of male bungling, blundering and whining, only to be kicked up a notch by pratfalls of nearly every variety, from getting bucked off a galloping horse to tripping into a pile of trash. —Natalia Winkelman, Variety, 27 May 2026

Mozart, however, isn’t merely a puerile rascal, as his relationship with Lauren Worsham’s Constanze reveals. —Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026

The latter’s taste for puerile subject matter and sing-song melodies plays into Swords2’s homage to early-’90s emo. —Jude Noel, Pitchfork, 10 Jan. 2026

The book, which has a decidedly feminist bent, becomes a surprise best-seller, and soon Penelope finds herself in Hollywood, surrounded by blowhard executives and puerile male screenwriters who want to adapt her work into a blockbuster. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

French or Latin; French puéril, from Latin puerilis, from puer boy, child; akin to Sanskrit putra son, child and perhaps to Greek pais boy, child — more at few

Noun

Middle French or Latin; Middle French puerilité, from Latin puerilitat-, puerilitas, from puerilis + -itat-, -itas -ity

First Known Use

Adjective

1527, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

puerile

adjective

pu·​er·​ile ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-əl 

-ˌīl

: showing a lack of maturity, seriousness, or good judgment

puerile remarks

puerility

ˌpyu̇(-ə-)r-ˈil-ət-ē 

noun

Medical Definition

puerile

adjective

pu·​er·​ile ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-əl, -ˌīl 

1

: marked by or suggesting childishness and immaturity

2

: being respiration that is like that of a child in being louder than normal

puerile breathing