“Puerile” (PYOO-ur-ul) – from the Latin for “boy” – means childishly foolish; immature or trivial.
Example (as used by David Brooks in a New York Times review of The American Future: A History by Simon Schama): “Schama’s book is called ‘The American Future: A History’ (which is a puerile paradox before you even open the cover), and it has nothing whatsoever to do with the American future.”
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