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
However, this is a childish fantasy.
—
Dr. Michael Good, Hartford Courant, 25 Mar. 2026
The more childish and unrefined, the better.
—Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2026
Child actor Jax James has been set in the series regular role of Dougie, Maureen’s only son who is not even ten but acts like a 60-year-old scholar and has no time for childish fancies.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 10 Mar. 2026
By the second half of the twentieth century, media depictions of bicycles often showed them as something exclusively for children, or for odd, childish adults.
—Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for childish
Dr. Michael Good, Hartford Courant, 25 Mar. 2026
The more childish and unrefined, the better.
—Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2026
Child actor Jax James has been set in the series regular role of Dougie, Maureen’s only son who is not even ten but acts like a 60-year-old scholar and has no time for childish fancies.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 10 Mar. 2026
By the second half of the twentieth century, media depictions of bicycles often showed them as something exclusively for children, or for odd, childish adults.
—Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for childish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for childish
Adjective
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Only this week, Conway doubled down with a stunt in front of Mfume’s district office, an act that would be immature and juvenile in an elementary school student government election, let alone a campaign for Congress.—
Bobby Zirkin,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Apr. 2026
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Faced with the prospect of deciding between Urlacher, a late bloomer in high school who almost wasn’t recruited before becoming a college All-American, and Michigan State receiver Plaxico Burress, regarded throughout the NFL as gifted but immature, the Bears did not have to choose.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
For any adolescent, a private bedroom is both sanctuary and mood board.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
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Khan is associate program director for the child/adolescent psychiatry fellowship at University of California, Los Angeles.—
Sarah Mohiuddin,
STAT,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Another resident, Jennifer Arnold, says someone needs to take accountability for the juvenile crime after witnessing the video of the children's joyride.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
-
One afternoon in November, just north of the small Oregon coastal town of Yachats, a juvenile humpback whale tumbled ashore.—
Robin Romm,
The Atlantic,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Childish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/childish. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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