wishy-washiness

noun

Definition of wishy-washinessnext
as in weakness
the quality or state of lacking strength of will or character this is no time for wishy-washiness: our country needs a leader who's not afraid to act decisively

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wishy-washiness
  1. weakness
  2. softness
Noun
  • If a bear market arrives shortly after retirement, a cash reserve can allow a family to meet expenses without immediately selling long-term investments into weakness.
    — Steve Booren, Denver Post, 16 Aug. 2026
  • To be sure, efforts to prop up the yen were seen as short-term measures to address the symptoms rather than the root causes of the currency’s weakness.
    — Jason Ma, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of weakness
Noun
  • The Better Body Pillow balances plush softness with genuine support.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • The lightweight formula delivers airy lift at the roots without sacrificing softness.
    — Iman Balagam, Vogue, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of softness
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.

Browse Nearby Words

wishing (for)
wishy-washiness
wishy-washy
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Wishy-washiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wishy-washiness. Accessed 17 Aug. 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!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

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

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
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 a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All