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
adverb -ˌī(-ə)l-lē
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
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
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 Hemingway, demonstrating yet again the quality of his friendship, denounced the essays as an act of puerile exhibitionism. 
Christopher Buckley, WSJ, 2 Sep. 2022 The decades-spanning but threadbare narrative begins, with what turns out to be a certain puerile appropriateness, in the year 2069, as the elderly King Alfredo of Portugal (Joel Branco) withers away on an austere deathbed in his cavernous palace. Guy Lodge, Variety, 4 June 2022 These actors may dispense miracle cures on television, but beneath the gleaming smiles and spotless white coats is a raging fire of high school politics, power trips and puerile shenanigans. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 30 Mar. 2022 But there’s something puerile about seeing all these male nubbins. Raven Smith, Vogue, 26 Jan. 2022 Bergman Island treats Ingmar Bergman’s oeuvre with a level of pretense not seen since Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy did their puerile versions of Eric Rohmer in their Sunset/Sunrise trilogy of heterosexual squabbling. Armond White, National Review, 13 Oct. 2021 Such exercises are pseudoacademic, puerile and transparently manipulative. WSJ, 7 Oct. 2021 To make matters worse, the lyrics are astonishingly puerile. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 1 Oct. 2021 Tanya feels like a fuller version of other characters that Coolidge has played — washed-up and spaced out, simultaneously puerile and battered — but with backstory enough to justify her sadness. Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 25 July 2021 See More
Christopher Buckley, WSJ, 2 Sep. 2022 The decades-spanning but threadbare narrative begins, with what turns out to be a certain puerile appropriateness, in the year 2069, as the elderly King Alfredo of Portugal (Joel Branco) withers away on an austere deathbed in his cavernous palace. Guy Lodge, Variety, 4 June 2022 These actors may dispense miracle cures on television, but beneath the gleaming smiles and spotless white coats is a raging fire of high school politics, power trips and puerile shenanigans. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 30 Mar. 2022 But there’s something puerile about seeing all these male nubbins. Raven Smith, Vogue, 26 Jan. 2022 Bergman Island treats Ingmar Bergman’s oeuvre with a level of pretense not seen since Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy did their puerile versions of Eric Rohmer in their Sunset/Sunrise trilogy of heterosexual squabbling. Armond White, National Review, 13 Oct. 2021 Such exercises are pseudoacademic, puerile and transparently manipulative. WSJ, 7 Oct. 2021 To make matters worse, the lyrics are astonishingly puerile. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 1 Oct. 2021 Tanya feels like a fuller version of other characters that Coolidge has played — washed-up and spaced out, simultaneously puerile and battered — but with backstory enough to justify her sadness. Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 25 July 2021 See More 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
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
puerile
adjective
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 Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- childish
- immature
- juvenile
- adolescent
- infantile
- jejune
- babyish
- kiddish
- girlish
- boyish
- childlike
- unsophisticated
- simplistic
- simple
- bratty
- brattish
- girlie
- naive
- innocent
- girly
- naïve
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- mature
- adult
- sophisticated
- grown-up
- worldly
- cosmopolitan
- smart
- unchildlike
- experienced
- knowing
- worldly-wise
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 Synonyms & Similar Words
- immature
- adolescent
- inexperienced
- juvenile
- young
- childish
- callow
- infantile
- unfledged
- unripe
- unformed
- youthful
- unripened
- green
- infantine
- babyish
- naive
- raw
- girlish
- boyish
- infantilized
- wet behind the ears
- innocent
- unsophisticated
- kiddish
- ingenuous
- youngish
- maidenly
- virginal
- naïve
- untrained
- untried
- unknowing
- juvenescent
- unseasoned
- tender
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- adult
- mature
- ripe
- precocious
- experienced
- advanced
- grown-up
- worldly
- sophisticated
- savvy
- knowing
- worldly-wise
3
as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity the kind of puerile jokes that teenage moviegoers apparently love Synonyms & Similar Words
- goofy
- silly
- futile
- giddy
- frivolous
- playful
- ditzy
- foolish
- inane
- scatterbrained
- harebrained
- flighty
- frothy
- light-minded
- yeasty
- featherbrained
- fatuous
- thoughtless
- birdbrained
- nonsensical
- ditsy
- witless
- dizzy
- superficial
- flippant
- daft
- crazy
- happy
- light-headed
- daffy
- shallow
- exuberant
- giggly
- lighthearted
- fruity
- sappy
- fluttery
- light
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- serious
- earnest
- melancholy
- sombre
- sober
- unfrivolous
- serious-minded
- thoughtful
- somber
- solemn
- grave
- heavy
- severe
- staid
- dignified
- sedate
- no-nonsense