as in afraid
having or showing a shameful lack of courage
vented his spleen at those milk-livered men who refused to fight for king and country
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for milk-livered
Adjective
-
The opposition ranged from clinical and code-based to angry and afraid.—
Mark Dee,
Idaho Statesman,
6 Jan. 2026 -
From animal prints to floral patterns and everything in between, don’t be afraid to let loose and have fun with patterns in your space.—
Cori Sears,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
On the other side of the yellow line, Hamas is digging in, too — regrouping after the war and consolidating control of its part of Gaza.—
Daniel Estrin,
NPR,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Oxygen emits either a greenish-yellow light (the most familiar color of the aurora) or a red light; nitrogen generally gives off a blue light.—
Jenna Prestininzi,
Freep.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The birds were scared away by a resident’s dog.—
Nicole Blanchard,
Idaho Statesman,
7 Jan. 2026
-
As Hodges stood there, scared and vulnerable, the man grabbed his baton and bashed him on the head with it, rupturing his lip and smashing his skull.—
Jamie Thompson,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Nearly a week later, Scott and Kodi Allred, a couple traveling to visit their son at the University of Northern Colorado, saw the frightened black dachshund darting along the same stretch of road near Elk Mountain.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Sometimes, a frightened reaction is inexplicable.—
The Atlantic Culture Desk,
The Atlantic,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Step by careful step, Holbrook climbed, holding out bologna and cheese until two pairs of cautious eyes peeked back.—
Ashley Vega,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 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
-
That larger significance is remarkably unheroic and fatalistic.—
Gabriel Winslow-Yost,
Harper's Magazine,
23 Sep. 2024
-
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
Adjective
-
In Humphrey Cobb’s 1935 novel about a trio of French soldiers condemned to death at random by their cowardly superiors, Kubrick found a perfect vessel for his obsessions.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
31 Dec. 2025
-
Deputy Brown’s courage in the face of an unprovoked and cowardly attack reflects the very best of our profession.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Dec. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Milk-livered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/milk-livered. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share