1
as in childish
having or showing the annoying qualities (as silliness) associated with children
told the teenagers that such puerile behavior would not be tolerated during the ceremony
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in immature
lacking in adult experience or maturity
allowed the company to be taken over by a bunch of puerile whippersnappers fresh out of business school
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity
the kind of puerile jokes that teenage moviegoers apparently love
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of puerile
The reflexive response to the sight of André Onana standing, yet again, with his head bowed and his shoulders slumped after Manchester United’s gloriously puerile draw with Galatasaray on Wednesday is sympathy.
—
Rory Smith, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2023
Trump is, always and forever, a puerile bully, stuck perpetually on the fifth-grade playground.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2024
The inexplicable twists are interspersed with puerile action scenes.
—Kyle Chayka, The New Yorker, 13 Feb. 2024
Hoping to usurp him from the throne, Kuzco's advisor, Yzma (Eartha Kitt), cooks up a plot to poison the puerile figurehead.
—Devin Nealy, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for puerile
Rory Smith, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2023
Trump is, always and forever, a puerile bully, stuck perpetually on the fifth-grade playground.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2024
The inexplicable twists are interspersed with puerile action scenes.
—Kyle Chayka, The New Yorker, 13 Feb. 2024
Hoping to usurp him from the throne, Kuzco's advisor, Yzma (Eartha Kitt), cooks up a plot to poison the puerile figurehead.
—Devin Nealy, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for puerile
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puerile
Adjective
-
The angular clock hands and classic-leaning clock face protect this personality piece from becoming gimmicky or childish, and instead remaining sophisticated and tasteful.—
Julia Harrison,
Architectural Digest,
31 Mar. 2025
-
See, the issue here isn’t that a college dude did a dumb, childish thing.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Many organizations grapple with obstacles such as disconnected data, internal roadblocks, misaligned objectives across teams and immature processes.—
Mithun A. Sridharan,
Forbes.com,
23 Apr. 2025
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And anybody that thinks otherwise is just being foolish and immature and childish.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
In one, Donald wears a Pride shirt and a goofy grin outside of the Airport Diner in Manchester, New Hampshire.—
Stephen Rodrick,
Rolling Stone,
18 May 2025
-
Here, however, the goofy moments don’t quite mesh with the heaviness of the themes, especially in the immediate wake of Bobby’s death.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
9 May 2025
Adjective
-
The teenage triggerman was aiming at an adolescent rival who had punched him moments earlier, police said.—
Emma Seiwell,
New York Daily News,
13 May 2025
-
One of a handful of practicing physicians in the state legislature, Weber Pierson is leaning heavily on her experience as a pediatric and adolescent gynecologist who treats children with reproductive birth defects — one of only two in Southern California.—
Kaiser Health News,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 May 2025
Adjective
-
Using the Graham Norton hologram to tell us that the Earth was turned to ash on May 24th, 2025 is just the right kind of silly for this show.—
Ryan Woodrow,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 May 2025
-
Eurovision is still too much of a silly spectacle for some, even with JJ in it.—
Alex Marshall,
New York Times,
16 May 2025
Adjective
-
McManus said the boy is also facing charges of terrorism and is currently being held at a local juvenile detention facility.—
Chris Spargo,
People.com,
15 May 2025
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The three juvenile suspects are also charged with murder, attempted armed robbery and second-degree burglary.—
Audrey Conklin,
FOXNews.com,
13 May 2025
Adjective
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Kruger had been an Akin superfan ever since his breakout Head-On — a gritty, violent love story about a young German-Turkish woman trying to break free of her religious, restrictive family — which won Berlin’s Golden Bear in 2004.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2025
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For much younger kids, Little Passports has an Early Explorers box ($20/month) aimed at children as young as 3.—
Adrienne So,
Wired News,
17 May 2025
Adjective
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Though their efforts were futile, their remains provide remarkable insight into the doomed city’s final moments.—
Eli Wizevich,
Smithsonian Magazine,
13 May 2025
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Through the two-hour journey that makes up the Thunderbolt’s origin story, the audience experiences the way these skilled fighters continue butting heads over the most futile issues.—
Malik Peay,
Essence,
8 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Puerile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puerile. Accessed 29 May. 2025.
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