Synonyms
Examples of cowardly in a Sentence
Adjective
He insisted on avoiding a cowardly retreat.
She made a cowardly decision to go along with the group.
a cowardly attack from behind
Recent Examples on the Web
Jack Guy, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
Intertwined with the franchise’s history via his connection to Negan, while simultaneously becoming a cackling, cowardly lunatic of his own mold entirely, the Croat is proof positive that there’s still more juice in the Walking Dead franchise.
—Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Mar. 2024
Truth will serve you better than being too cowardly to be blunt.
—Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2024
The football gods rewarded that cowardly decision by helping the Packers block that attempt.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 26 Jan. 2024
Florida’s very compliant (or very cowardly) state Legislature has provided Air DeSantis another $12 million to waste on cross country immigrant dumps.
—Fred Grimm, Sun Sentinel, 12 Jan. 2024
Bennett will play Spamalot's cowardly Sir Robin among an ensemble cast that includes Alex Brightman as Sir Lancelot, Christopher Fitzgerald as Patsy, James Monroe Iglehart as King Arthur, Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer as The Lady of the Lake, and Ethan Slater as The Historian/Prince Herbert.
—Tommy McArdle, Peoplemag, 3 Jan. 2024
But that’s cowardly leadership, says Richard Edelman, CEO of his namesake PR firm.
—Peter Vanham, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2023
What’s particularly shocking is the unprecedented outbreak of it in the United States and the cowardly, see-no-evil reaction of so many of our academic and civic institutions.
—Steve Forbes, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023
Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Apr. 2024
Some have alleged the police officers were cowardly.
—Dean Minnich, Baltimore Sun, 3 Feb. 2024
Those who orchestrated this cowardly attack must be held accountable.
—Lillian Boyd, The Arizona Republic, 29 Jan. 2024
Nobody should go through this, and these cowardly actions should be punished.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 11 July 2023
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has called this shoot a cowardly act.
—ABC News, 27 Aug. 2023
Derby Dinner Playhouse presents one of MGM’s grandest and most beloved musicals featuring Dorothy, Toto, the Wicked Witch, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the cowardly Lion.
—The Courier-Journal, 3 July 2022
One of the main issues is the cowardly stance of the NHL.
—Mike Freeman, USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2023
Never mind that Kendall is decades younger and in vastly better physical condition; if the unstoppable, invulnerable Logan Roy can die without warning, couldn’t the same happen to his cowardly, self-destructive son?
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 1 May 2023
Adverb
The first minstrel shows mimicked enslaved Africans on plantations in the Southern United States, depicting Black people as lazy, ignorant, cowardly or hypersexual, according to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC).
—Jack Guy, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
Intertwined with the franchise’s history via his connection to Negan, while simultaneously becoming a cackling, cowardly lunatic of his own mold entirely, the Croat is proof positive that there’s still more juice in the Walking Dead franchise.
—Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Mar. 2024
Truth will serve you better than being too cowardly to be blunt.
—Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2024
The football gods rewarded that cowardly decision by helping the Packers block that attempt.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 26 Jan. 2024
Florida’s very compliant (or very cowardly) state Legislature has provided Air DeSantis another $12 million to waste on cross country immigrant dumps.
—Fred Grimm, Sun Sentinel, 12 Jan. 2024
Bennett will play Spamalot's cowardly Sir Robin among an ensemble cast that includes Alex Brightman as Sir Lancelot, Christopher Fitzgerald as Patsy, James Monroe Iglehart as King Arthur, Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer as The Lady of the Lake, and Ethan Slater as The Historian/Prince Herbert.
—Tommy McArdle, Peoplemag, 3 Jan. 2024
But that’s cowardly leadership, says Richard Edelman, CEO of his namesake PR firm.
—Peter Vanham, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2023
What’s particularly shocking is the unprecedented outbreak of it in the United States and the cowardly, see-no-evil reaction of so many of our academic and civic institutions.
—Steve Forbes, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023
Adjective
That our charming protagonist makes cowardly choices is a boon to Música.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Apr. 2024
Some have alleged the police officers were cowardly.
—Dean Minnich, Baltimore Sun, 3 Feb. 2024
Those who orchestrated this cowardly attack must be held accountable.
—Lillian Boyd, The Arizona Republic, 29 Jan. 2024
Nobody should go through this, and these cowardly actions should be punished.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 11 July 2023
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has called this shoot a cowardly act.
—ABC News, 27 Aug. 2023
Derby Dinner Playhouse presents one of MGM’s grandest and most beloved musicals featuring Dorothy, Toto, the Wicked Witch, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the cowardly Lion.
—The Courier-Journal, 3 July 2022
One of the main issues is the cowardly stance of the NHL.
—Mike Freeman, USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2023
Never mind that Kendall is decades younger and in vastly better physical condition; if the unstoppable, invulnerable Logan Roy can die without warning, couldn’t the same happen to his cowardly, self-destructive son?
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 1 May 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cowardly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near cowardly
Cite this Entry
“Cowardly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cowardly. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
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