puny
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puny
- /ˈpjuːni/ UK
- /ˈpjuni/ US
Sounds like puisne · Rhymes with -uːni
Where it comes from
A respelling of puisne, from Anglo-Norman puisné (“later, more recent; junior; weakly”) [and other forms] and Middle French puisné (“born after (a specified person); younger, youngest; one who is born after (a specified person)”) (modern French puîné (“cadet (born after a sibling); a cadet (someone born after a sibling)”)), from puis (“after; since”) + né (“born”). Puis is derived from Old French pois (“after; since”), from Vulgar Latin *postius (“afterward”), from Latin posteā (“afterwards; hereafter; thereafter; next, then”), from post (“after; since”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pós (“afterwards”)) + ea (“these (things)”); and né from Latin nātus (“born”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to beget; to give birth; to produce”).
adjective punier · puniest
-
Of inferior significance, size, or strength; ineffective, small, weak.
You puny earthlings are no match for Ming the Merciless!
Similar: angular, anorexic, carrion, emaciated, gangling, gangly, gaunt, haggard, stringy, macilent, lank, lanky
- (Frequently) ill; poorly, sickly.
- Inferior in rank; specifically, of a judge: junior. Gadsbodkins, you puny Upſtart in the Law, to uſe me ſo, you Green Bag Carrier, you Murderer of unfortunate Cauſes, the Clerks Ink is ſcarce off of your fingers, you that newly come from Lamblacking the Judges ſhooes, and are not fit to wipe mine; […]
- Coming later in time; secondary, subsequent.
- Not experienced; novice.
noun punies
-
An inferior person; a subordinate; also, an insignificant person.
·
Similar: inferior, junior, puisne, underling, vassal, absolute zero, also-ran, chopped liver, cipher, crumb, Joe Nobody, little guy · Opposite: superior, baron, big cheese, big enchilada, big gun, big kahuna, big man, big name, big noise, big shot, bigwig, big wheel
- A younger person; a junior. [A] law that the eldeſt or firſt-borne child ſhall ſucceede and inherite all: where nothing is reſerved for punies, but obedience: […] Theſe vaine ſhadowes of our religion, which are ſeene in ſome of theſe examples, witnes the dignitie and divinity thereof.
-
A person who is not experienced; a beginner, a novice.
Nay then I ſee thou'rt but a puny in the ſubtill Miſtery of a woman: […]
Similar: newb, rookie, tenderfoot, abecedarian, alphabetarian, apprentice, amateur, beginner, bun, colt, first-timer, fledgling
- A puisne or junior judge.
- A new student at a school, university, the Inns of Court, etc.; a junior. [T]he whole companye or most parte of the Studentꝭ [Studentis] of the same house mette toogether to beginne their Christmas, of wᶜʰ som̃e came to see sports […] others to make sporte wᵗʰall of this last sorte were they whome they call Fresh-menn Punies of the first yeare, who are by no meanes admitt
Translations
Every language
adj of inferior size — see also small
| Español | flojo, gualtrapas, tirillas |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 자그마하다 jageumahada |
| 日本語 | ちっぽけな chippoke na, 虚弱な kyojaku na, 弱々しい yowayowashii |
| 中文 | 弱小 ruòxiǎo, 微小 wēixiǎo |
| Português | fraco, franzino, pequeno |
| Français | chétif, frêle |
| Deutsch | kläglich, klein, kümmerlich, mickrig, schwächlich |
| Italiano | gracile, sparuto |
| Ελληνικά | αδύνατος adýnatos, μικροκαμωμένος mikrokamoménos, μικρός mikrós |
| Русский | кро́хотный króxotnyj, кро́шечный króšečnyj |
Talk about this word "puny." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/puny. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. puny. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/puny "puny." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/puny.Cite this
@misc{puny_2026,
title = {puny},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/puny},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
