COWARDS Synonyms: 25 Similar and Opposite Words

cowards

noun

plural of coward

as in cravens

a person who shows a shameful lack of courage in the face of danger the soldiers who ran as soon as the first shots were fired were branded as cowards

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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.

Recent Examples of cowards But none of those cowards should be in a pit lane in the foreseeable future. — Zach Dean Outkick, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026 To me, moral cowards are those leaders around the world who refuse to sit down and negotiate a just and lasting peace. — ABC News, 26 Sep. 2026 No, and as true as all that might be, the most important lesson is that DEI turns people into cowards. — Bradley Gitz, Arkansas Online, 7 Sep. 2026 To me, the most notable change — outside of Robert not getting fully naked, you cowards — is that the meltdown is witnessed by much more of the senior class. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2026 In reality, the refs just do the bidding of the cowards behind the curtain. — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 14 July 2026 These are American cowards that are rooting against our Country. — Khaled Wassef, CBS News, 13 May 2026 And Trump calls ’em almost like cowards. — Chris Willman, Variety, 12 May 2026 Parties aside, the majority of our legislators are cowards. — Sam Meas, Boston Herald, 2 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cowards

Noun

The researchers also identified similar, diverging paths in brain development in other species, ranging from zebrafish to chickens — and even acorn worms, which are evolutionarily extremely distant from humans.

— Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 24 Sep. 2026
The questions of who and why are a mystery for the season to solve, but old adversaries like Frank Harkness and Peter Judd have emerged from the sludge around now, too, and there’s an overwhelming sense now of chickens coming home to roost.

— Scott Tobias, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of chickens

Noun

Until the 19th century, most Westerners, including European royalty, ate with their knives (and considered Italians to be sissies for using forks).

— Judith Martin, Mercury News, 4 Aug. 2026
The irony is that a minority once viewed as filled with sissies and losers is now portrayed as filled with bullies and power brokers, and straight people, especially men, seem to perceive themselves as the weak and afraid ones.

— Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026

Definition of sissies

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cowardly

cowards

cowboy

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“Cowards.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cowards. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of cowards

noun

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