1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

coward 1 of 2

noun

ˈkau̇(-ə)rd How to pronounce coward (audio)
Definition of cowardnext
as in craven
a person who shows a shameful lack of courage in the face of danger the soldiers who ran as soon as the first shots were fired were branded as cowards

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

coward

2 of 2

adjective

as in cowardly

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 coward
Noun
Corey Graves was much more talkative this time around, lambasting Big Cass as a coward while supporting Evans. — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026 The mythmaking rebellion of Tekena, first of her name, for the sake of a coward’s love was as recognizable to her descendants as their need to cross borders, both ethnic and geographic, in search of a happiness that wasn’t promised. — Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026
Adjective
Whoomp, whoomp bumped the coward heart. — James Arthur, The New York Review of Books, 5 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for coward
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coward
  1. craven
  2. cowardly
  3. chicken
  4. gutless
  5. pusillanimous
Noun
  • This measure is a craven, deceptive, regressive, and destructive push to gut local control and services, and hand power to a barely accountable central government in Tallahassee.
    — Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Sun Sentinel, 9 July 2026
  • In 2024, The Onion purchased Infowars, the conspiracy website born of the craven lunatic/Sandy Hook shooting denier Alex Jones.
    — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 29 Apr. 2026
Definition of craven
Adjective
  • In the case stood the cowardly lion's costume from the original film The Wizard of Oz from 1938.
    — Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • The cowardly, devious Turgeniev has assimilated to the comforts of the West —that alone is enough for Fyodor to detest him.
    — Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of cowardly
Noun
  • At the franchisee convention, executives shared that the next evolution of its chicken offerings will be hand-breaded.
    — Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Egypt claimed to have achieved 100 percent chicken-egg self-sufficiency and reported a 113 percent year-over- year increase in rumors.
    — J. B. MacKinnon, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of chicken
Adjective
  • Forget about the networks, the streaming money is just going to continue to get bigger, especially at a time when there are almost as many pay channels as there are gutless members of Congress.
    — Mike Lupica, New York Daily News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Trump’s revenge tour also took down five Indiana state senators who had voted against the midterm gerrymandering to which Florida’s gutless Republicans have agreed.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 29 May 2026
Definition of gutless
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
Definition of pusillanimous

Browse Nearby Words

cow
coward
cowardice
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Coward.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coward. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tactile

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All