Definitions for cowardice
ˈkaʊ ər dɪscow·ardice

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. cowardice, cowardlinessnoun

   the trait of lacking courage

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. cowardicenoun

   Lack of courage.

2. Etymology: cowardise, from cuardise (modern French: couardise).

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Cowardicenoun

   Fear; habitual timidity; pusillanimity; want of courage.

   Etymology: from coward.

   Certes, sir knight, ye been too much to blame,
   Thus for to blot the honour of the dead;
   And with foul cowardice his carcase shame,
   Whose living hands immortaliz’d his name. Fairy Queen.

   Gallant and fearless courage will turn into a native and heroick valour, and make them hate the cowardice of doing wrong. John Milton, on Education.

   None was disgrac’d; for falling is no shame,
   And cowardice alone is loss of fame;
   The vent’rous knight is from the saddle thrown,
   But ’tis the fault of fortune, not his own. John Dryden, Fables.

   This great, this holy, this terrible Being, is present to all our affections; sees every treacherous inclination of our heart to desert his service; and treasures up, against the day of his wrath, the secret cowardice which deters us from asserting his cause, which prevails on us to compliment the vices of the great, to applaud the libertine, and laugh with the prophane. John Rogers, Sermon 4.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Cowardice

   Cowardice is a trait wherein excessive fear prevents an individual from taking a risk or facing danger. It is the opposite of courage. As a label, "cowardice" indicates a failure of character in the face of a challenge. One who succumbs to cowardice is known as a coward.As the opposite of bravery, which many historical and current human societies reward, cowardice is seen as a character flaw that is detrimental to society and thus the failure to face one's fear is often stigmatized and/or punished.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. cowardice

   Cowardice is a characteristic or trait defined by a lack of courage or bravery in facing fear, danger, difficulty, or adversity. It is often associated with the act of running away from challenging situations instead of confronting them.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Cowardicenoun

   want of courage to face danger; extreme timidity; pusillanimity; base fear of danger or hurt; lack of spirit

2. Etymology: [F. couardise, fr. couard. See Coward.]

WikidataRate this definition:3.5 / 4 votes

1. Cowardice

   Cowardice is a trait wherein fear and excess self-concern override doing or saying what is right, good and of help to others or oneself in a time of need—it is the opposite of courage. As a label, "cowardice" indicates a failure of character in the face of a challenge. “Cowardice is impotence worse than violence. The coward desires revenge but being afraid to die, he looks to others, maybe to the government of the day, to do the work of defense for him. A coward is less than a man. He does not deserve to be a member of a society of men and women.” - Mahatma Gandhi Under many military codes of justice, cowardice in combat is a crime punishable by death. The term describes a character flaw which has been shunned and disdained within most, if not all cultures, whilst courage, typically viewed as a virtue, is admired and encouraged.

Dictionary of Nautical TermsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. cowardice

   Are criminal by law, even in the crew of a merchant-ship. Such poltroonery is very rare.

Military Dictionary and GazetteerRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. cowardice

   See Appendix, Articles of War, 42.

Matched Categories

1. • Spirit

How to pronounce cowardice?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say cowardice in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of cowardice in Chaldean Numerology is: 5

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of cowardice in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of cowardice in a Sentence

1. Mark Twain:

   There are several good protections against temptations, but the surest is cowardice.

2. Edward Whelan:

   The chief surely knows that his job is to be on the right side of the Constitution, blatherings about the 'wrong side of history' are an appeal to intellectual cowardice. – Edward Whelan

3. Ernest Hemingway:

   Cowardice, as distinguished from panic, is almost always simply a lack of ability to suspend the functioning of the imagination. Learning to suspend your imagination and live completely in the very second of the present with no before and no after is the greatest gift a soldier can acquire.

4. Charles de LEUSSE:

   Terrorists kill from far, but cowardice is not far. (Les terroristes tuent de loin, Mais la lâcheté n'est pas loin)

5. George Jackson:

   Patience has its limits. Take it too far, and it's cowardice.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=cowardice
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Cowardice
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=cowardice
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowardice
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cowardice
7. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=cowardice
8. ^ Dictionary of Nautical Terms
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/26000/pg26000-images.html#:~:text=cowardice
9. ^ Military Dictionary and Gazetteer
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/59563/pg59563-images.html