as in dolls
a puppet that is moved by pulling strings or wires that are attached to its body
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Recent Examples of marionettes
Natalie Haynes fleshes out the backstories of her cast—Jason, a handsome ship captain on a quest for the Golden Fleece, the scheming sorceress Medea, and Olympian deities toying with mortals like marionettes—and imbues them all with contemporary vibes.
—
Hamilton Cain, Time, 3 Mar. 2026
There are marionettes, masks, shadow puppets and table top puppets.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 24 Feb. 2026
This snowy themed show, which features about 100 marionettes, includes sledding slopes, caroling penguins and Santa’s workshop.
—Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 26 Nov. 2025
Hamilton Cain, Time, 3 Mar. 2026
There are marionettes, masks, shadow puppets and table top puppets.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 24 Feb. 2026
This snowy themed show, which features about 100 marionettes, includes sledding slopes, caroling penguins and Santa’s workshop.
—Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 26 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for marionettes
Noun
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Lizzy's dolls eventually become brown with dirt.—
KYLE MELNICK THE WASHINGTON POST,
Arkansas Online,
15 Mar. 2026
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In an expansion of its business of processing pharmaceuticals in Earth’s orbit, Varda Space Industries is renting a large El Segundo plant where toy manufacturer Mattel used to design Hot Wheels and Barbie dolls.—
Roger Vincent,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Each band’s gear had been set up on dollies and risers, secured under forty-foot-long tents.—
Alex Abramovich,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
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Most carts, dollies, and internal transport tools are discarded simply because a single part failed or the workflow changed.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Dec. 2025
Noun
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The figurines have movable joints and serve as a blank canvas to be pierced, painted, posed or sculpted into whatever comes to mind for the artist, or comes in the form of an artist commission.—
Lisa Deaderick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Mar. 2026
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The film’s use of religious imagery—in footage of the Islamic ritual tawaf on TV, in the positioning of speakers at the desert party like Catholic figurines on an altar—charges raving with a higher meaning.—
Álex Maroño Porto,
The Atlantic,
14 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Democrats strongly opposed Kent's confirmation because of his past ties to far-right figures and conspiracy theories.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
18 Mar. 2026
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The Center for American Progress, a left-leaning policy institute, questioned those figures and pointed to analyses predicting a more modest $331 to $748 increase.—
Dan Avery,
CNBC,
17 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Marionettes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/marionettes. Accessed 24 Mar. 2026.
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