CHILDISHNESS Synonyms: 122 Similar and Opposite Words

childishness

noun

as in nonsense

Related Words

Relevance

as in inexperience

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of childishness Lonnie is a Ferrell-ian blend of narcissism and good-natured childishness, but of the wishy-washiest type. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 16 July 2026 The childishness of his expressions infantilized a genuinely vicious regime, painting it as more peevish than petrifying. — Fintan O’Toole, The New York Review of Books, 9 Apr. 2026 The actor relishes all aspects of Dahl’s childishness, and the humanity within the beast emerges in small moments. — Daniel D'addario, Variety, 24 Mar. 2026 Cove, on West Houston Street, does not mark an especially obvious step into maturity or anything narratively pat like that, because McGarry’s cooking and his businesses have never really had so much as a hint of childishness to begin with. — Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 11 Jan. 2026 The gesture’s lack of dignity, its childishness, its pettiness, are completely in character. — Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 25 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for childishness

Noun

The lyrics coalesced slowly, with McCartney filling the incomplete sections with nonsense phrases.

— Jordan Runtagh, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2026
Statham, who turned 59 this summer and is still in incredible shape, performs on his usual high-octane, no-time-for-nonsense level.

— Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of nonsense

Noun

Clear areas in which Newcastle can improve are hardly surprising, given the relative inexperience across their squad.

— Chris Waugh, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
Weaknesses include inexperience on defense, NIL budget After a season that ranked 125th in total defense, Schiano decided to overhaul the coaching staff and turn to the portal for help.

— Everett Merrill, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of inexperience

Noun

Indeed, at lunch, instead of separating into groups to eat, all 16 participants form one mega table and spend the half-hour joking and laughing together.

— Ellise Shafer, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026
Many readers — some likely joking — shared their grievances with Elmo.

— Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of joking

Noun

The 25-year-old California singer-songwriter staked out his turf by taking pride in the ordinariness of his hit, from the mild-mannered vocals to the drama-free sincerity of his romantic imagery.

— Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 1 Sep. 2026
Most scenes were filmed with four or five takes as the actors experimented with different tones, feelings, and levels of sincerity to give Meriwether options in the editing room.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of sincerity

Noun

And the frankness underlying their oddly dorky connection also paints any potential relationship between them as tragic from the jump.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2026
Written with grimy, enlivening frankness — and an ability to dig into moral ambiguity — every character scrambles to get a leg up.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of frankness

Noun

Hudson showed some subtle support for the jesting knocks to her boyfriend by reposting a clip of his final joke shared on Fox News' official X page.

— Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 18 May 2026
No matter what happened, Dunham could not seem to help posting through it, her public persona one of infinite jesting confession.

— Madeline Leung Coleman, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2026

Definition of jesting

Noun

But the Windows handheld software experience on the Claw is just awful compared to the straightforwardness of SteamOS on the Steam Deck.

— Jay Peters, The Verge, 23 June 2026
On Monday morning, Starmer, whose resignation has appeared inevitable for some time, delivered the news with his customary straightforwardness.

— Sam Knight, New Yorker, 22 June 2026

Definition of straightforwardness

Browse Nearby Words

childish

childishness

childlike

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Style

“Childishness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/childishness. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of childishness

noun

Example Sentences

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