Cowardly

Pronunciation: /ˈkaʊərdli/

Definitions of cowardly

adjective showing a lack of courage or bravery; timid

Example Sentences

A1 He felt cowardly when faced with the spider.

A2 The cowardly lion was afraid of everything.

B1 She made a cowardly decision to run away from the fight.

B2 The soldier's cowardly actions led to the defeat of his platoon.

C1 The politician's cowardly behavior during the crisis was heavily criticized.

C2 The CEO's cowardly refusal to take responsibility for the company's failures caused outrage among shareholders.

Examples of cowardly in a Sentence

formal His cowardly behavior during the crisis was disappointing.

informal Don't be cowardly, stand up for yourself!

slang He acted all cowardly when faced with a challenge.

figurative The storm clouds were like cowardly shadows creeping across the sky.

Grammatical Forms of cowardly

• past tense: was cowardly
• plural: cowardlies
• comparative: more cowardly
• superlative: most cowardly
• present tense: is cowardly
• future tense: will be cowardly
• perfect tense: has been cowardly
• continuous tense: is being cowardly
• singular: cowardly
• positive degree: cowardly
• infinitive: to be cowardly
• gerund: being cowardly
• participle: cowardly

Origin and Evolution of cowardly

First Known Use: 1250 year

Language of Origin: Middle English

Story behind the word: The word 'cowardly' originated from the Middle English word 'coward', which was derived from the Old French word 'couard', meaning 'coward'.

Evolution of the word: Over time, the word 'cowardly' has retained its original meaning of lacking courage or bravery, but has also taken on connotations of being timid or easily frightened.