coward

¹

[ kou-erd ]

noun

1. a person who lacks courage in facing danger, difficulty, opposition, pain, etc.; a timid or easily intimidated person.

   Synonyms: milksop, recreant, dastard, poltroon, craven

adjective

1. lacking courage; very fearful or timid.
2. proceeding from or expressive of fear or timidity:

   a coward cry.

Coward

²

[ kou-erd ]

noun

1. Noel, 1899–1973, English playwright, author, actor, and composer.

Coward

¹

/ ˈkaʊəd /

noun

1. CowardSir Noël (Pierce)18991973MEnglishTHEATRE: dramatistTHEATRE: actorMUSIC: composer Sir Noël ( Pierce ). 1899–1973, English dramatist, actor, and composer, noted for his sophisticated comedies, which include Private Lives (1930) and Blithe Spirit (1941)

coward

²

/ ˈkaʊəd /

noun

1. a person who shrinks from or avoids danger, pain, or difficulty

Word History and Origins

Origin of coward¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Old French couard-, couart “cowardly,” from coue “tail” (from Latin cauda, cōda ) + -art -ard

Word History and Origins

Origin of coward¹

C13: from Old French cuard, from coue tail, from Latin cauda; perhaps suggestive of a frightened animal with its tail between its legs

Example Sentences

That same day, the Fox News host also attempted to contact Swalwell, asking the congressman to call him and then calling him a “coward” when he refused to do so, according to screenshots of the exchange Swalwell posted to Twitter.

From The Daily Beast

Not because Hunger Games books make us happy, but because we want to be sedated, because it’s painful not to pretend, because we’re cowards.

From Vox

Human progress has never been fostered by the cowards who have let fear rule their lives.

From Washington Post

It’s as if Hall doesn’t trust his audience to appreciate Coward’s delightful acidity—he’s scrubbed all of that away, as if it were tarnish and not the actual shine.

From Time

She called Hogg, then 18 years old, “a coward” for not responding to her.

From Washington Post

Hill advised him not to, saying that if he did so, the cadets would regard him as a coward.

From The Daily Beast

And cancer, deceiver, pretender, coward; it cannot even subsist without the vibrant people it depends on.

From The Daily Beast

Or he could have been a coward, lashing out at me for some online slight.

From The Daily Beast

He was ultimately a coward, and he took no pleasure in his victims fighting back.

From The Daily Beast

Nina Straight says her half-brother was “a physical coward but not scared of death.”

From The Daily Beast

A coward by nature, he had been on the verge of a nervous breakdown before the trial, thinking of what might happen.

From Project Gutenberg

I have not in the world the name of a coward, and yet I am the greatest coward here.

From Project Gutenberg

A grand victory all right, if that coward of a sheriff hadn't got the Governor to send the militia to Homestead.

From Project Gutenberg

He was thought brave, for no man in the Ozarks dared to stand up against him in a fight, but at heart he was a coward.

From Project Gutenberg

I had forgotten for the moment that the cop was a coward; but Burke didn't waste a bit of time in bringing back my memory.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• wimp