1
as in dolls
a small figure often of a human being used especially as a child's plaything
gave her a puppet with strings for a gift
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in pawns
one that is or can be used to further the purposes of another
accused the newspaper editor of being a puppet for the moneyed people of the town
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of puppets
At the Make Art Zone, Semmerling will lead an activity for kids to make their own bird puppets with a moveable beak free of charge.
—
Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Presented in a circular theater, it combined puppets, screens and an acrobatic performer hanging from above, its innovative format is even more advanced than the one used in the new Little Mermaid show at Disney World in Orlando.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Even seeing the animatronic puppets waiting to strike in the shadows was scary.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2025
Children from the community will be a part of the production, which features song-and-dance numbers as well as live-action puppets.
—Virginia Brown, Charlotte Observer, 3 Sep. 2025
Jordan Sook’s video finds Drake and Party as puppets while sipping lean and taking a yacht out with plenty of women, and even hopping on Air Drake.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2025
Broad hands held out right in front of him, cut up in streetlight, making shadow puppets on the split cement and talking to nobody, all by himself, all the time.
—Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
More than 232 puppets are featured in the production which took director Taymor and her team 37,000 hours to make.
—Lee Sharrock, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024
The band of robot puppets has been a mainstay at the colorful pizzeria-arcade chain where children run amok and play games for prizes in between bites of pizza slices.
—The Learning Network, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Presented in a circular theater, it combined puppets, screens and an acrobatic performer hanging from above, its innovative format is even more advanced than the one used in the new Little Mermaid show at Disney World in Orlando.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Even seeing the animatronic puppets waiting to strike in the shadows was scary.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2025
Children from the community will be a part of the production, which features song-and-dance numbers as well as live-action puppets.
—Virginia Brown, Charlotte Observer, 3 Sep. 2025
Jordan Sook’s video finds Drake and Party as puppets while sipping lean and taking a yacht out with plenty of women, and even hopping on Air Drake.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2025
Broad hands held out right in front of him, cut up in streetlight, making shadow puppets on the split cement and talking to nobody, all by himself, all the time.
—Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
More than 232 puppets are featured in the production which took director Taymor and her team 37,000 hours to make.
—Lee Sharrock, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024
The band of robot puppets has been a mainstay at the colorful pizzeria-arcade chain where children run amok and play games for prizes in between bites of pizza slices.
—The Learning Network, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puppets
Noun
-
The deals range from headbands and plush dolls for $3 apiece to hats and souvenir sipper cups for $5 each.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
16 Sep. 2025
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Labubu dolls, of course, are imported from China, and South Park found a way to tie that craze into doll sacrifices to summon Satan (and Trump by proxy).—
Tim Lammers,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Missing pawns, cracked hourglass timers, and flimsy boxes have a way of sneaking up on you.—
Mary Catherine McAnnally Scott,
Southern Living,
12 Sep. 2025
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We’re being used as pawns in a much bigger chess game here.—
Demetrius Patterson,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Many students rely on social media platforms to access online classes, research materials and collaborative learning tools.—
Nir Kshetri,
The Conversation,
14 Sep. 2025
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By transforming consumer devices into medical monitoring tools, gaps could be bridged in health care by providing continuous oversight.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Puppets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puppets. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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