as in immature
having or showing the annoying qualities (as silliness) associated with children
you almost spoiled the ceremony for everyone with your childish giggling
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Recent Examples of childish
Child actor Jax James has been set in the series regular role of Dougie, Maureen’s only son who is not even ten but acts like a 60-year-old scholar and has no time for childish fancies.
—
Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 10 Mar. 2026
By the second half of the twentieth century, media depictions of bicycles often showed them as something exclusively for children, or for odd, childish adults.
—Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 5 Mar. 2026
The queen—blond, leggy, wearing dark glasses and a red flapper dress—lounges on an armchair while ministers in suits delight their childish king by dancing with him, turning him and his big belly in cartwheels and the like.
—Jennifer Homans, New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2026
Hence the childish clown imagery in an era before coulrophobia was widely talked about.
—Fielding Buck, Oc Register, 16 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for childish
Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 10 Mar. 2026
By the second half of the twentieth century, media depictions of bicycles often showed them as something exclusively for children, or for odd, childish adults.
—Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 5 Mar. 2026
The queen—blond, leggy, wearing dark glasses and a red flapper dress—lounges on an armchair while ministers in suits delight their childish king by dancing with him, turning him and his big belly in cartwheels and the like.
—Jennifer Homans, New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2026
Hence the childish clown imagery in an era before coulrophobia was widely talked about.
—Fielding Buck, Oc Register, 16 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for childish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for childish
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
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Even Michael’s social life is left blank, far beyond his adolescent solitudes.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
23 Apr. 2026
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Relatedly, another study published Friday in JAMA Network Open found that rates of adolescent cannabis use increased after recreational use was legalized in California, but decreased after the Covid pandemic.—
Theresa Gaffney,
STAT,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The boat had 13 people on board, including seven men, five women and a juvenile female.—
Robert McGreevy,
FOXNews.com,
25 Apr. 2026
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But in the weeks ahead, juvenile nymphs will become more common.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
25 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Childish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/childish. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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