Meaning & use
puerile
Silly and immature in a way expected of a young child rather than an adult.
See it in a sentence
The meeting descended into puerile name-calling instead of productive discussion.
Critics dismissed the comedy's humor as puerile and repetitive.
A note on using this word
Puerile is more formal and more critical in tone than childish, and is almost always used disapprovingly about adults' behavior.
Words with a similar meaning
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Words with an opposite meaning
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