1
as in childish
having or showing the annoying qualities (as silliness) associated with children
told the teenagers that such puerile behavior would not be tolerated during the ceremony
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in immature
lacking in adult experience or maturity
allowed the company to be taken over by a bunch of puerile whippersnappers fresh out of business school
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity
the kind of puerile jokes that teenage moviegoers apparently love
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of puerile
The book, which has a decidedly feminist bent, becomes a surprise best-seller, and soon Penelope finds herself in Hollywood, surrounded by blowhard executives and puerile male screenwriters who want to adapt her work into a blockbuster.
—
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026
The Twits are so gross and puerile and nasty in the book.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
Worse, though, than such puerile behavior is what Dhillon embodies: an us-vs.-them attitude that permeates the administration and treats those who didn’t vote for Trump — which is more than half the country — as a target.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 10 Oct. 2025
The film is not opposed to the occasional piece of puerile humor, like introducing the Dallas skyline exclusively with the decidedly phallic Reunion Tower.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for puerile
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026
The Twits are so gross and puerile and nasty in the book.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
Worse, though, than such puerile behavior is what Dhillon embodies: an us-vs.-them attitude that permeates the administration and treats those who didn’t vote for Trump — which is more than half the country — as a target.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 10 Oct. 2025
The film is not opposed to the occasional piece of puerile humor, like introducing the Dallas skyline exclusively with the decidedly phallic Reunion Tower.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for puerile
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puerile
Adjective
-
The literature on adolescence marks middle school as a turning point, a time when kids begin to pull away from their parents, discard childish pursuits, and pursue, full thrust, the exhausting project of individuation.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
That’s as childish an expression as the show ever shares.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
13 Apr. 2026
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
-
But the goofier parts of Over Your Dead Body offer some hope for the future.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
27 Apr. 2026
-
There’s a steadiness to Tung/Wonder Woman that stands out for its quiet authority in a frequently goofy landscape peppered with poisonous robes and finger-eating minions.—
Sarah Shachat,
IndieWire,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
For any adolescent, a private bedroom is both sanctuary and mood board.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
Khan is associate program director for the child/adolescent psychiatry fellowship at University of California, Los Angeles.—
Sarah Mohiuddin,
STAT,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Maybe the bright lights of a win-or-go-home playoff game proved too big of a moment for a young, inexperienced Hawks team.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
1 May 2026
-
Edmonton showed off its postseason poise in Game 5, throttling the Ducks in a 4-1 victory and putting the onus on their inexperienced opponents to finish off the series.—
Greg Beacham,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
Not bad for a silly movie about killer worms from outer space.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
1 May 2026
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The idea seemed silly at first — who would be interested in a bean box subscription?—
Angela Osorio,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 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
Adjective
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And there was going to be an awful lot of emotional resonance and relatability with today’s generation of young women with Mary Bennet, more so than there would be [with Elizabeth Bennet.—
K.J. Yossman,
Variety,
7 May 2026
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Men are more positive than women, and young people much more positive than their parents.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Puerile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puerile. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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