puppet

noun

pup·pet ˈpə-pət

often attributive

: 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

: marionette

: doll sense 1

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

a puppet ruler

puppetlike

ˈpə-pət-ˌlīk

adjective

Example Sentences

a dictator who was perceived as being an American puppet gave her a puppet with strings for a gift

Recent Examples on the Web Animals, music, puppet shows, face painting and more. —

Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 28 May 2023 Baby-friendly activities like songs and puppets are accompanied by a tour of a specific area of the zoo. —

Amy Schwabe, Journal Sentinel, 25 May 2023 In the 1930s, Puyi was appointed puppet leader of Manchuria, the northeastern region that Japan had occupied as part of its invasion of China. —

Oliver Hu, NBC News, 24 May 2023 After some persuading, the two are then seen practicing using puppets. —

Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 28 Apr. 2023 Two colleagues came to Tbilisi from St. Petersburg carrying suitcases filled with theatrical props and decided to open a small puppet theater for children. —

Sergey Ponomarev Ivan Nechepurenko, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2023 There wasn’t an airline CEO onboard trying to drag Middle Seat Man out of his spot, but airlines are the puppet masters who’ve made flying so miserable that passengers are practically forced into battle over scarce resources (see: the reclining-seats wars). —

Beth Teitell, BostonGlobe.com, 19 Jan. 2023 Even Caesar himself was Crassus’s puppet at the beginning of his career. —

Peter Stothard, Time, 21 Dec. 2022 The puppet’s antics also put him on the radar of a couple unseemly fellows. —

Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 9 Dec. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'puppet.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.