as in afraid
having or showing a shameful lack of courage
a cowardly bully who picks on the weak and defenseless vile charges that were made in a cowardly, unsigned letter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in cravenly
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cowardly
Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2025
Keeping things vague would be cowardly for a movie called Materialists.
—Seija Rankin, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025
Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2025
The cowardly capitulation of Paul Weiss and Skadden Arps are negative examples to be learned from.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cowardly
Adjective
From Joan of Arc to Cassidy Hutchinson, whenever men have proven too cautious, cowardly or complacent to act, women have had the courage to do the right thing.
—Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2025
Keeping things vague would be cowardly for a movie called Materialists.
—Seija Rankin, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025
Adverb
Those who resort to violence to undermine our state and nation must be held accountable, and our state leaders must reinforce through decisive action that these cowardly attacks will not be tolerated.
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2025
The cowardly capitulation of Paul Weiss and Skadden Arps are negative examples to be learned from.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cowardly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cowardly
Adjective
-
Although Indiana has not experienced an immigration raid at this scale, community leaders shared that many in migrant communities are afraid that they may potentially be picked up off the street and deported, whether rightfully or not.—
Noe Padilla,
IndyStar,
23 July 2025
-
If getting this set up on your own sounds daunting, don’t be afraid to ask for help, McCoy says.—
Ryan Ermey,
CNBC,
23 July 2025
Adjective
-
Put simply, Johnson is the more coveted commodity on a craven reliever market at the trade deadline.—
Zach Pressnell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 July 2025
-
While health care and food assistance command the most attention, the craven assault on clean energy cannot be minimized.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
3 July 2025
Adjective
-
There’s people that are getting into trouble because the powers that be are scared, too.—
Mario Koran,
jsonline.com,
12 July 2025
-
Most notable in the repeat of Man of Steel elements and themes, there’s the Kryptonian message threatening earth, which makes the public scared, so Superman turns himself in to government authorities.—
Mark Hughes,
Forbes.com,
12 July 2025
Adjective
-
Today’s Republican Party is a bunch of weak, spineless cowards who cower in obedient terror at Trump’s feet.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
12 July 2025
-
An erect, sprawling, and spineless cactus, the flowers are white, fragrant, and measure 12 inches long and 8 inches wide.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
15 June 2025
Adjective
-
Listen, by doing it this way, with a press release instead of a press conference, Rose looks both gutless and gutty at the same time.—
Mike Lupica,
New York Daily News,
6 June 2025
-
Two baseballs flew down toward the San Diego Padres’ Jurickson Profar from the left-field corner stands, the gutless moves of two cowards.—
Bill Plaschke,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Oct. 2024
Adjective
-
Not surprisingly, the woman being targeted by the scams was extremely frightened.—
Susan Tompor,
USA Today,
30 July 2025
-
Many people may be intrinsically frightened of robots.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
2 July 2025
Adjective
-
Some also have lost lawyers, dismayed by the pusillanimous behavior of their leaders.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2025
-
The second believed the United States could attain comprehensive security through military-technological means and saw diplomacy as a quixotic or pusillanimous enterprise that dishonored and weakened the country.—
A. Wess Mitchell,
Foreign Affairs,
22 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The bi-tone bezel, incidentally, is the key to keeping track of dastardly deeds in two different time zones simultaneously.—
Chris Haslam,
Wired News,
23 May 2025
-
Naturally, this doesn't last long, and he gets called in to help nab the elusive arms dealer Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman) — the most dastardly villain he's faced yet.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
21 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cowardly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cowardly. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share