1
as in bland
lacking in qualities that make for spirit and character
she's such a namby-pamby nothing that it's no wonder she's never asked out
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in weak
lacking strength of will or character
mocked namby-pamby intellectuals who endlessly debate the pros and cons of everything and invariably end up accomplishing nothing
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in coward
a person without strength of character
those namby-pambies at city hall are never going to get serious about our crime problem
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Recent Examples of namby-pamby
John B. Judis, The New Republic, 19 Mar. 2023
Adjective
Walzer’s dissent was namby-pamby.
—John B. Judis, The New Republic, 19 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for namby-pamby
Adjective
-
But products also became more bland, predictable and stripped of individuality.—
Wolfgang Messner,
The Conversation,
2 June 2025
-
The show never figures out what to do with Alvarez’s Gael, leaving a bland center to several more of those twists in the last episode.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
In sum, there is a weak case, at best, for some kind of standardization of non-financial KPIs.—
Shivaram Rajgopal,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2025
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But many Tea Party nominees proved to be weak general election candidates when running for Senate, delaying Republican control of the upper chamber until 2014.—
W. James Antle III,
The Washington Examiner,
13 June 2025
Noun
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Floundering in his career and stressed about planning his wedding, Yvan’s woes compound when his oldest friends turn their insults on him, calling him a coward, an amoeba and a fan of motel art.—
Emily McClanathan,
Chicago Tribune,
7 May 2025
-
That’s when one coward hit me from behind with a backpack.—
Brie Stimson , Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Some people assume that longtime married couples are boring, but my husband has never bored me.—
Seija Rankin,
HollywoodReporter,
4 June 2025
-
Spectators perceive tennis outfits as plain, boring, rigid or limited to a specific silhouette.—
Ruth Etiesit Samuel,
Essence,
2 June 2025
Adjective
-
In language the rest of us can understand that means a slightly softer and more mellow click that’s quieter and less harsh than teh average mechanical keyboard.—
Mark Sparrow,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2025
-
In the play’s most beautiful moments, Smart recites Izzy’s poems in a sweet-bourbon croon—wafting, careful, soft.—
Helen Shaw,
New Yorker,
13 June 2025
Noun
-
The wimps in the Republican Congress and Senate allowed this to happen.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
6 May 2025
-
Kelly, a bit of a spice wimp, needed sips of the sweet pickle lemonade to handle the heat.—
Kelly Tyko,
Axios,
3 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Brazil were insipid at last summer’s Copa America and have gone downhill since.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
16 May 2025
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Little Dog asks, an insipid comparison that illuminates only the fungibility of abstract nouns.—
Andrea Long Chu,
Vulture,
6 May 2025
Noun
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Based on this challenge, the groups would have been weaklings Cedrek, Star, Chrissy, Sai, Kamilla, and Mary in one group and Eva, Joe, Mitch, Kyle, David, and Shauhin in the strongman group.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
9 Apr. 2025
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The fact these losers want to jail Andrew and Tristan Tate for preaching their version of traditional masculinity highlights the fact that these fascist feminists are fragile weaklings incapable of defending their position in the free marketplace of ideas.—
David Catanese,
Miami Herald,
20 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Namby-pamby.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/namby-pamby. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
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