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
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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
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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 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
The Twits are so gross and puerile and nasty in the book.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
Worse, though, than such puerile behavior is what Dhillon embodies: an us-vs.-them attitude that permeates the administration and treats those who didn’t vote for Trump — which is more than half the country — as a target.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 10 Oct. 2025
The film is not opposed to the occasional piece of puerile humor, like introducing the Dallas skyline exclusively with the decidedly phallic Reunion Tower.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for puerile
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026
The Twits are so gross and puerile and nasty in the book.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
Worse, though, than such puerile behavior is what Dhillon embodies: an us-vs.-them attitude that permeates the administration and treats those who didn’t vote for Trump — which is more than half the country — as a target.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 10 Oct. 2025
The film is not opposed to the occasional piece of puerile humor, like introducing the Dallas skyline exclusively with the decidedly phallic Reunion Tower.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for puerile
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puerile
Adjective
-
The whole tweet story now feels almost like a childish tale.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
13 May 2026
-
The feeling was less substantial, more childish, like expecting someone to walk in and scold you for doing something wrong and not knowing where to hide.—
Francesco Pacifico,
The Dial,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
There’s so much regulation coming our way aimed at removing any sort of greenwashing, but even if that is successful, the customer is still immature.—
Elektra Kotsoni,
Vogue,
8 May 2026
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On top of that, the immature grubs chew through grass roots and create dead patches in your lawn.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
The goofy quest is a Reply All trope; the pair once travelled to the Middle East to track down a hacker who tried to take over their personal computers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 May 2026
-
Where Iain was tart, Hoffman was goofy and glib, using the jokey pitch modulations of a fake talk-show host to let viewers know that the Islanders’ doings were ridiculous.—
Anna Peele,
Vulture,
20 May 2026
Adjective
-
The film follows Dudley, an adolescent frog desperate to break free from the iron grip of his father Arthur, the mayor of frog town.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
16 May 2026
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But the idea at the heart of Curry Barker’s new horror film, Obsession, has an endearingly adolescent, back-to-basics simplicity.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
15 May 2026
Adjective
-
The key with this inexperienced crew is patience.—
Chris Perkins,
Sun Sentinel,
22 May 2026
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When junior employees ask similar questions, it may be interpreted as being unprepared or inexperienced.—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
Adjective
-
Even though the percentages and point-system, along with simulcast rules, can seem silly and out of touch with creative and investment reality, CanCon made possible global hits like Crave and HBO’s hockey romance series Heated Rivalry.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
21 May 2026
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That tension — something prosaic or silly culminating in something hilarious and transfixing — achieved what poor Vandenberg and her pratfalls could not.—
Anna Peele,
Vulture,
20 May 2026
Adjective
-
The juvenile bear’s wander across campus late Thursday and early Friday prompted an advisory to students and a search by UC Davis police and wardens from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife as well as Yolo County Animal Control.—
Allison Gibson,
Sacbee.com,
15 May 2026
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Over the last 20 years, scientists have documented an increasing number of juvenile great white sharks cruising waters off Southern California beaches.—
Ian James,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
The 76ers have one of the best young backcourts in the league in Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, and the expectations of the Philadelphia fan base are high.—
Tony Jones,
New York Times,
21 May 2026
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Apart from the Syrian with the fire extinguisher, there were no young or middle-aged men.—
Rania Abouzeid,
New Yorker,
21 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Puerile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puerile. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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