as in dwarf
a person of no importance or influence
in high school he was just a little twerp, and now he's a big Internet entrepreneur
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Recent Examples of twerp
Once a sky-blue democracy is restored, may Trump’s days of infamy be ruled illegitimate and his name and legacy duly tainted by all of history, darkly blackened or cautiously reddened in the honest records that this twerp and his twisted cohorts have conspired so heinously to whitewash.
—
Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 8 Mar. 2026
Taking on classic buddy-comedy attributes, Sam is the together one with a programmatic path toward life as a wealthy but hollow finance twerp, while Ari is the brash, cracked, less-medicated-than-he-should-be bull in a china shop.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 8 Sep. 2025
Most of the movie is a vaguely comical swipe at Napoleon in domestic life—an awkward lover, a jealous husband, an inveterate complainer, and in sum an annoying twerp.
—Kyle Smith, WSJ, 21 Nov. 2023
Kind of a little twerp, now and again.
—Ashley Fetters Maloy, Washington Post, 7 Nov. 2022
His Abigail is a perfect twerp, the peevish flipside to Pitt's Most Interesting Man in the World shtick.
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 18 Mar. 2022
When Briggs leaves Lulu in a (cool, safe) car at night, an animal-rights twerp seeks to break a window with a rock to let in some air, until Briggs advises him why this would be a bad idea.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 18 Feb. 2022
That’s the mystery and the magnetism of what the actor’s doing, and without it this Henry would merely be a Lancastrian twerp.
—BostonGlobe.com, 24 Oct. 2019
To that end, its supporting characters are vivid: One step above Travis in the FAM hierarchy is Cody (Théodore Pellerin), a type-A twerp with a masochistic streak.
—Judy Berman, Time, 20 Aug. 2019
Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 8 Mar. 2026
Taking on classic buddy-comedy attributes, Sam is the together one with a programmatic path toward life as a wealthy but hollow finance twerp, while Ari is the brash, cracked, less-medicated-than-he-should-be bull in a china shop.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 8 Sep. 2025
Most of the movie is a vaguely comical swipe at Napoleon in domestic life—an awkward lover, a jealous husband, an inveterate complainer, and in sum an annoying twerp.
—Kyle Smith, WSJ, 21 Nov. 2023
Kind of a little twerp, now and again.
—Ashley Fetters Maloy, Washington Post, 7 Nov. 2022
His Abigail is a perfect twerp, the peevish flipside to Pitt's Most Interesting Man in the World shtick.
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 18 Mar. 2022
When Briggs leaves Lulu in a (cool, safe) car at night, an animal-rights twerp seeks to break a window with a rock to let in some air, until Briggs advises him why this would be a bad idea.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 18 Feb. 2022
That’s the mystery and the magnetism of what the actor’s doing, and without it this Henry would merely be a Lancastrian twerp.
—BostonGlobe.com, 24 Oct. 2019
To that end, its supporting characters are vivid: One step above Travis in the FAM hierarchy is Cody (Théodore Pellerin), a type-A twerp with a masochistic streak.
—Judy Berman, Time, 20 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for twerp
Noun
-
For instance, Eilish is an animal lover with a pet dwarf hamster named Tomato Bisque Soup.—
Tiney Ricciardi,
Denver Post,
1 June 2026
-
Writer Steve Phillips’ investments in the race dwarfs spending by any other single donor.—
Ben Paviour,
Sacbee.com,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Unlike some of his more strapping forebears (think Liam Neeson, Kevin Costner, or Aaron Eckhart), Odenkirk specializes in nobodies and normals: people one would not expect to be killing machines.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
16 Apr. 2026
-
After all, why listen to a podcast with two nobodies co-hosting when a listener can get an hour from a familiar celebrity.—
Frank Racioppi,
Forbes.com,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Consider a dashboard that shows applications, including keys and libraries; network traffic protocols and ciphers; hardware, such as HSMs and TPMs; and third-party dependencies, including cryptographic or software bills of materials.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
-
As zonky cross-generational ciphers go, the group’s debut, Strictly 4 the Scythe, is no Hypnotize Camp Posse, the amalgam of Three 6 Mafia and a grip of artists signed to their Hypnotize Minds label in the early 2000s.—
Dylan Green,
Pitchfork,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Shop lightweight and breathable pairs that still look polished, including these pleated trousers.—
Rachel Trujillo,
PEOPLE,
2 June 2026
-
Is the fabric lightweight and likely to tangle?—
Jolie Kerr,
Better Homes & Gardens,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
But the parasite was eliminated in those nations thanks to a wildly successful effort called the sterile insect technique, which involved the release of sterile flies in Panama that caused the fly population to collapse.—
Tanya Lewis,
Scientific American,
4 June 2026
-
The way to eliminate New World screwworm, Rollins said, is through what’s known as the sterile insect technique.—
Ciara McCarthy,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
More, the coaches of the last three title-winning teams (Florida’s Todd Golden and Hurley) all come from the current crop of whippersnappers, as do the leaders of each 1-seed in this tourney.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Mills gives off the disarming sense of a secure soul undeterred by whippersnappers who toss around fancy words such as gerontocracy.—
Mark Leibovich,
The Atlantic,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Twerp.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/twerp. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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