Puppet
//ˈpʌpɪt// noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any small model of a person or animal able to be moved by strings or rods, or in the form of a glove.
- 2 a doll with a hollow head of a person or animal and a cloth body; intended to fit over the hand and be manipulated with the fingers wordnet
- 3 A person, country, etc, controlled by another. figuratively
"These men , from no worse motive that could be discovered than a thirst after knowledge beyond their sphere , committed burglary upon the barn in which the puppets had been consigned to repose"
- 4 a small figure of a person operated from above with strings by a puppeteer wordnet
- 5 A poppet; a small image in the human form; a doll. obsolete
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- 6 a person who is controlled by others and is used to perform unpleasant or dishonest tasks for someone else wordnet
- 7 The upright support for the bearing of the spindle in a lathe.
Verb
- 1 To control or manipulate like a puppet. also, figuratively, transitive
Example
More examples"I have lived a life of a puppet of fortune."
Etymology
From Middle English popet, probably from, though attested earlier than, Middle French poupette, diminutive of poupée (cf. also Medieval Latin *pupata), ultimately derived from Latin pupa (“doll, puppet; girl”). The nominal form first appears c. 1531, and the verbal form c. 1635. See also puppy.
Related phrases
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.