as in immature
having or showing the annoying qualities (as silliness) associated with children
you almost spoiled the ceremony for everyone with your childish giggling
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Recent Examples of childish
What begins as childish torment quickly escalates into far more sinister and disturbing incidents.
—
Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 7 Mar. 2025
And, indeed, Sandler's stardom came on the back of him dicking around with funny voices, childish characters, and sketches surrounding both.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2025
My hair is still thin, childish and deserving of the gentle wash that baby shampoo affords.
—John Hodgman, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
The pair settle right away into the half-affectionate, half-annoyed, goofy childish dynamic recognizable to adult siblings everywhere — to the amusement and occasional irritation of Frank, a locally beloved good old boy who’s only the teeny-tiniest bit prone to vanity and corruption.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for childish
Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 7 Mar. 2025
And, indeed, Sandler's stardom came on the back of him dicking around with funny voices, childish characters, and sketches surrounding both.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2025
My hair is still thin, childish and deserving of the gentle wash that baby shampoo affords.
—John Hodgman, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
The pair settle right away into the half-affectionate, half-annoyed, goofy childish dynamic recognizable to adult siblings everywhere — to the amusement and occasional irritation of Frank, a locally beloved good old boy who’s only the teeny-tiniest bit prone to vanity and corruption.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for childish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for childish
Adjective
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He’s been there; Harper was emotional — at times, immature — as a younger player.—
Matt Gelb,
The Athletic,
25 Mar. 2025
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From its opening scenes, Severance has presented the procedure the show is named for as a kind of birth, the spawning of a new, immature being.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Disturbing New Details Emerge About the State of the Global Climate Chronic Climate Stressors Hadfield and her team identified three main ways that climate change affected adolescent mental health.—
Stephanie Edwards,
Discover Magazine,
19 Mar. 2025
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The low-scoring adolescent may not have enjoyed those same advantages and may have experienced stress due to poverty.—
Dalton Conley,
TIME,
19 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Adult males, called boars, are emerging from their dens this month, with females and juvenile bears expected to follow in April and early May.—
Sarah Kuta,
Smithsonian Magazine,
28 Mar. 2025
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Paulo needed physical therapy to recover from several surgeries to shorten her left leg to the length of her right leg — the difference a consequence of juvenile arthritis.—
Jordan Rau,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Childish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/childish. Accessed 4 Apr. 2025.
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