puerile

adjective

pu·​er·​ile ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-əl 

-ˌī(-ə)l

1

: juvenile

2

: childish, silly

puerile remarks

puerilely

ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-ə(l)-lē 

-ˌī(-ə)l-lē

adverb

puerility

ˌpyu̇(-ə)r-ˈi-lə-tē 

noun

Did you know?

Puerile may call to mind qualities of youth and immaturity, but the term itself is no spring chicken. On the contrary, it's been around for more than three centuries, and its predecessors in French and Latin, the adjectives puéril and puerilis, respectively, are far older. Those two terms have the same basic meaning as the English word puerile, and they both trace to the Latin noun puer, meaning "boy" or "child." Nowadays, puerile can describe the acts or utterances of an actual child, but it more often refers (usually with marked disapproval) to occurrences of childishness where adult maturity would be expected or preferred.

Synonyms

• adolescent
• babyish
• childish
• immature
• infantile
• jejune
• juvenile
• kiddish

Examples of puerile in a Sentence

told the teenagers that such puerile behavior would not be tolerated during the ceremony

allowed the company to be taken over by a bunch of puerile whippersnappers fresh out of business school

Recent Examples on the Web

Lamar and his family, in this reading, are Edenic figures, inaugurating a new sort of American iconography, descended from Wood and Parks but breaking from them as well, born from the aftermath of a great—if also sometimes regrettably puerile—battle. —Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 11 July 2024

Trump’s supporters turn the tables on his puerile critics. —Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2024

The whole matter is puerile, and Sheriff Gahler should accept he’s met his match in Cassilly. —Aegis Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 29 Mar. 2024

The reflexive response to the sight of André Onana standing, yet again, with his head bowed and his shoulders slumped after Manchester United’s gloriously puerile draw with Galatasaray on Wednesday is sympathy. —Rory Smith, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

French or Latin; French puéril, from Latin puerilis, from puer boy, child; akin to Sanskrit putra son, child and perhaps to Greek pais boy, child — more at few

First Known Use

1527, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

puerile

adjective

pu·​er·​ile ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-əl 

-ˌīl

: showing a lack of maturity, seriousness, or good judgment

puerile remarks

puerility

ˌpyu̇(-ə-)r-ˈil-ət-ē 

noun

Medical Definition

puerile

adjective

pu·​er·​ile ˈpyu̇(-ə)r-əl, -ˌīl 

1

: marked by or suggesting childishness and immaturity

2

: being respiration that is like that of a child in being louder than normal

puerile breathing