as in cowardly
having or showing a shameful lack of courage
his dastardly conduct in a critical moment haunted him for the rest of his life
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Recent Examples of dastardly
Trump keeps clamoring for a Nobel Peace Prize, but his hopes are delusional since his incompetent dealings with Putin and Netanyahu have enabled them to continue their dastardly deeds.
—
Chicago Tribune, 21 Aug. 2025
The movie became a cause célèbre for the downtrodden treatment of the creative class in Hollywood, with many names coming out in support of the movie and its dastardly fate.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 20 Aug. 2025
Serial killers with a code, far-future space operas, superheroes doing battle with dastardly villains.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for dastardly
Chicago Tribune, 21 Aug. 2025
The movie became a cause célèbre for the downtrodden treatment of the creative class in Hollywood, with many names coming out in support of the movie and its dastardly fate.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 20 Aug. 2025
Serial killers with a code, far-future space operas, superheroes doing battle with dastardly villains.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for dastardly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dastardly
Adjective
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Qatar denounces ‘cowardly’ Israeli strike targeting Hamas leaders Israel launched an aerial strike against senior Hamas leaders in Doha on Tuesday, in its first direct attack on Qatari soil, marking a significant escalation in regional tensions.—
Jeronimo Gonzalez,
semafor.com,
10 Sep. 2025
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Now innocent children are dying because so many people were too cowardly to speak up.—
Suzanne Blake,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Beck has a fluid, quick throwing motion and isn’t afraid to fit the ball into tight windows.—
Dane Brugler,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Luckily, the 2025 Emmys shows us that, now more than ever, men aren’t afraid to show a little personality in their red carpet looks.—
Brett F. Braley-Palko,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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There are lots of good rebuttals to this craven move.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
5 Aug. 2025
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Texas Governor Greg Abbott is under severe pressure from President Donald Trump to restart one of the most craven and self-destructive practices of American politics in the 21st century: predatory gerrymandering.—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 July 2025
Adjective
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This version of Frankenstein’s monster enters the world as a frightened newborn babe, scared and curious and desperate for human affection.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
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In fact, Vanngo wants everyone to keep in mind that makeup is meant to be played and experimented with, so don’t be scared to try a new look.—
Celia Shatzman,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Republicans are frightened, too.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
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Farima was withdrawn and frightened.—
Sarah Ferguson,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Some also have lost lawyers, dismayed by the pusillanimous behavior of their leaders.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2025
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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
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The airport in Cap-Haïtien was calm and orderly, the streets were alive with daily commerce and children in bright yellow uniforms played together during recess.—
Footwear News,
Footwear News,
12 Sep. 2025
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However, Diggs has a yellow brick road in front of him to rewrite the narrative of his second contract with a strong start to the season and a return to prime form in 2025.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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That larger significance is remarkably unheroic and fatalistic.—
Gabriel Winslow-Yost,
Harper's Magazine,
23 Sep. 2024
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In the world of The Boys, based on the gleefully scabrous 2000s indie comic-book series of the same name by writer Garth Ennis and artist Darick Robertson, superheroes are real, pop-culture-dominating, and with rare exceptions, entirely unheroic.—
Brian Hiatt,
Rolling Stone,
13 June 2024
Cite this Entry
“Dastardly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dastardly. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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