puppet
Americannoun
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an artificial figure representing a human being or an animal, manipulated by the hand, rods, wires, etc., as on a miniature stage.
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a person, group, government, etc., whose actions are prompted and controlled by another or others.
- Synonyms:
- instrument, figurehead, pawn
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a small doll.
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Machinery. poppethead.
noun
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a small doll or figure of a person or animal moved by strings attached to its limbs or by the hand inserted in its cloth body
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( as modifier )
a puppet theatre
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a person, group, state, etc, that appears independent but is in fact controlled by another
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( as modifier )
a puppet government
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of puppet
1350–1400; earlier poppet, Middle English popet, apparently alteration of Middle Low German poppe doll < Late Latin puppa, Latin pūpa doll; see -et
Explanation
A doll or figure controlled by a person so that it appears to be moving on its own is a puppet. A puppet can be fun, but if you feel like a puppet, it seems like someone is controlling you. Not fun. A puppet show, performed for an audience, is a kind of theater — with puppets instead of actors. Hand puppets' arms are controlled by the puppeteer's fingers, while marionettes have many more nuances of movement due to the strings attached to various parts of their bodies. These complex puppets can appear very human-like. Sometimes puppet means someone who is controlled by others: "He was president, but he was just a puppet for his political party."
Vocabulary lists containing puppet
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Sock Puppet City started back in 2006 selling portraits of puppets out of a New York City park and has evolved into a business that sells actual puppets and produces puppeteer-centric videos.
From MarketWatch • Nov. 8, 2025
Instead, Padgett and his two dogs, Puppet and Luna, set up camp across the Key Bridge in a wooded part of Virginia.
From Slate • Oct. 8, 2025
He has written or co-written several songs for Eurovision, including the UK's winning song "Puppet on a String" in 1967, which singer Jade Thirlwall used a sample of in a song last year.
From BBC • Sep. 12, 2025
On March 30, the guild will sponsor the first of its three yearly Puppetzilla Puppet Slams at the Mayflower Club in North Hollywood; there, puppet artists will present new work to an 18-and-over crowd.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2024
“Who is this Puppet you two keep mentioning?”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
