Puppet

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpʌpɪt/

Definitions

1. A movable figure often made to imitate life through manipulation by strings or hands
2. An artificial representation of a creature or person used in performances to convey narratives or entertain
3. A figure controlled manually or by strings to mimic living motion ; a person or organization that is controlled and directed by another more powerful entity

Etymology: The word "puppet" comes from a Latin root meaning "doll," and its path into English ran through French. Latin "pupa" could mean a doll or a small figure, and also, informally, a girl. Its diminutive in Old French, "poupette," gave English the Middle English "popet," and the modern spelling settled later. The same Latin root is the ancestor of "puppy," which shares this lineage. Both words descend from the idea of a small, toy-like creature or figure, so a puppy and a puppet are cousins in the sense of being little things made to amuse. The noun in its modern sense of a figure moved by strings first appears around 1531, while the verb meaning to act as someone else's mouthpiece or to be controlled by another dates from about 1635. The metaphor of a person acting under another's direction grew naturally from the physical image of a doll whose limbs are worked by hidden hands.

Synonyms: marionette, dummy, figure, stool pigeon

Antonyms: master, controller