Thomas Fleming
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Craven and its synonyms dastardly and pusillanimous are all basically fancy words for "cowardly." Don't be afraid to use them—here's a little information to help you recognize the subtle distinctions in their connotations. Craven suggests extreme defeatism and complete lack of resistance. One might speak of "craven yes-men." Dastardly often implies behavior that is both cowardly and treacherous or skulking or outrageous, as in this example: "a dastardly attack on unarmed civilians." Pusillanimous suggests a contemptible lack of courage, as in "After the attack, one editorialist characterized the witnesses as 'the pusillanimous bystanders.'"
Examples of craven in a Sentence
Simon Hughes, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
Lead actors Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Anthony Mackie share minimal chemistry, though the episode’s most craven move has to be contriving a loophole giving the romantic opposites an easy out.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025
In the new showbiz comedy The Studio, Bryan Cranston has a recurring role as Griffin Mill, the craven movie executive played by Tim Robbins in the 1992 film The Player.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2025
In any event Marshall, a craven idiot, is a raucous, vulgar sendup of the bedrock American principle of Manifest Destiny.
—Tom Gliatto, People.com, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for craven
Cite this Entry
“Craven.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/craven. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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