marionette

[ mar-ee-uh-net ]

/ ˌmær i əˈnɛt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR marionette ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a puppet manipulated from above by strings attached to its jointed limbs.

Nearby words

mariolatry, mariologist, mariology, marion, marion, francis, marionette, mariotte's law, mariposa, mariposa lily, maris, marisat

Origin of marionette

1610–20; < French marionnette, equivalent to Marion (diminutive of Marie Mary) + -ette -ette

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for marionette

Have you ever been on a film and felt manipulated by a director, sort of like a marionette?
Keanu Reeves Dishes On Kung Fu, Amazon Drones, Directing ‘Man of Tai Chi,’ And More|Marlow Stern|December 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He had gone on to such projects as a 28-foot marionette for the 1965 Balanchine production of Don Quixote.
Big Bird’s Big Gay Love Story: From Birth to the 2012 Presidential Race|Michael Daly|October 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST
In epicurean Rome it was a marionette that invited you to wreathe yourself with roses before they could fade.
The Lords of the Ghostland|Edgar Saltus
I should like to do so,” the Marionette answered, “for it is our last meeting.
Adventures in Toyland|Edith King Hall

Alidoro laughingly held out his paw to the Marionette, who shook it heartily, feeling that now he and the Dog were good friends.
The Adventures of Pinocchio|C. Collodi--Pseudonym of Carlo Lorenzini
The poor Marionette was caught in a trap set there by a Farmer for some Weasels which came every night to steal his chickens.
The Adventures of Pinocchio|C. Collodi--Pseudonym of Carlo Lorenzini
His locomotion was not his own: his master moved his arms and legs for him as if he were a marionette.
Eugenics and Other Evils|G. K. Chesterton

British Dictionary definitions for marionette

marionette

/ (ˌmærɪəˈnɛt) /

noun

an articulated puppet or doll whose jointed limbs are moved by strings

Word Origin for marionette

C17: from French, from Marion, diminutive of Marie Mary + -ette

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

marionette

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of marionette

Examples from the Web for marionette

British Dictionary definitions for marionette

marionette

noun

Word Origin for marionette