puny

adjective

pu·​ny ˈpyü-nē 

punier; puniest

: slight or inferior in power, size, or importance : weak

punily

ˈpyü-nə-lē 

adverb

puniness

ˈpyü-nē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• bantam
• diminutive
• dinky
• dwarfish
• fine
• half-pint
• Lilliputian
• little
• pint-size
• pint-sized
• pocket
• pocket-size
• pocket-sized
• pygmy
• shrimpy
• slight
• small
• smallish
• subnormal
• toylike
• undersized
• undersize

Examples of puny in a Sentence

I wouldn't mess with him—he makes bodybuilders look puny in comparison.

We laughed at their puny attempt to trick us.

Recent Examples on the Web

But these would seem puny compared with some of the snake species that slithered on Earth millions of years ago. —Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 28 Jan. 2025

Looking at the entirety of his career, these little critical riddles are pretty puny. —Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 17 Jan. 2025

This time, the rearrangement looks far more radical than the puny size of Gaza might have suggested. —Max Rodenbeck, TIME, 17 Jan. 2025

Taken together with the bones, however—and with some help from modern technology—these earthen imprints give a holistic picture of the prehistoric creatures that sashayed along in their heyday, oblivious to the puny mammals of the future who would gawk at their footprints millions of years later. —Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Anglo-French puisné younger, weakly, literally, born afterward, from puis afterward + né born

First Known Use

circa 1577, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

puny

adjective

pu·​ny ˈpyü-nē 

punier; puniest

: slight or lesser in power, size, or importance : weak

puniness noun

Etymology

from early French puisné "younger," literally, "born afterward," from puis "afterward" and né "born"