1
as in weakness
the quality or state of lacking strength of will or character
the spinelessness that the grown woman has shown in dealing with her overbearing mother
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fearfulness
a shameful lack of courage in the face of danger
charged the midshipman with sickening spinelessness under fire
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spinelessness
Some protesters are there to boo and shame Benitez for her spinelessness.
—
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2025
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spinelessness
Noun
-
These were analyzing their own strengths and opponents’ weaknesses, forecasting what steps the opponents would take, and making a decision on what to do next.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Mar. 2026
-
For the luxury industry, the stakes extend well beyond the immediate disruption as missiles light up the skies over the region that many hoped would help offset offset weakness in China and deliver the sector’s next chapter of growth.—
Ritu Upadhyay,
Footwear News,
3 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Such cancellations are a blot on the escutcheon of the left as certainly as cancellations from the right, and the deference of any publisher to them a mark of rank cowardice.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Esther’s concealment is not cowardice.—
Rabbi Bruce D. Forman,
Sun Sentinel,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Given the President’s long-standing support for corporate tax cuts and deregulation of industry, this pusillanimity is perhaps not so surprising.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
22 Sep. 2025
-
Our logrolling, our stumps and their politics, our fisheries, our Negroes and Indians, our boasts and our repudiations, the wrath of rogues and the pusillanimity of honest men, the northern trade, the southern planting, the western clearing, Oregon, and Texas, are yet unsung.—
Mark Edmundson,
Harper’s Magazine ,
12 Dec. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Spinelessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spinelessness. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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