Meaning & use
puppies
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“puppies” is a form of “puppy”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Young dogs, especially ones that are not yet fully grown.
Grammar: Always plural; the singular is puppy. Use it with plural verbs: The puppies are playing.
Patterns
- a litter of puppies
- puppies for sale
- feed the puppies
The puppies were born last week and still cannot open their eyes.
We bought two puppies from the same litter.
The children laughed as the puppies chased each other around the yard.
nounpluralinformalfigurative
Used figuratively to describe young, inexperienced people or things.
Grammar: Informal and often humorous; not for formal writing.
The new employees are just puppies; they need a lot of training.
Those little startups are puppies compared to the big tech companies.
Word forms
| singular | puppy |
|---|
Common combinations
- a litter of puppies
- Our dog gave birth to a litter of puppies yesterday.
- puppies for sale
- There's a sign outside the farm saying 'puppies for sale'.
- playful puppies
- The playful puppies kept jumping on everyone.
- feed the puppies
- Don't forget to feed the puppies before you leave.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pups
- An informal short form of puppies, common in American English.
- whelps
- An old-fashioned word for young dogs, now rare.
Opposites
Word family
- puppy noun
- A single young dog.
- puppyish adjective
- Behaving like a puppy; playful and clumsy.
- puppyhood noun
- The stage of being a puppy.
Commonly confused: puppies or poppies?
puppies vs poppies
Poppies are bright red flowers; puppies are baby dogs. They sound similar but are completely different.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'puppies' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The correct answer is 'The puppies are sleeping' because 'puppies' is a plural noun and takes the plural verb 'are'. 'Is' is singular and does not agree with a plural subject.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “puppies”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.