milquetoast

1 of 2

noun

milque·​toast ˈmilk-ˌtōst 

: a timid, meek, or unassertive person

milquetoast

2 of 2

adjective

1

of a person : timid, meek, or unassertive

Do we really want a someone who is a milquetoast halfhearted candidate or someone who will defend the Constitution with every fiber of her being?

—Dana B. Orr

2

: lacking in character or vigor : wishy-washy

… after declining multiple opportunities to comment during the reporting of the story, he finally produced a most milquetoast statement Friday.

—Jerry Brewer

Did you know?

Why is it milquetoast, and not milk toast?

Caspar Milquetoast is a comic strip character created in 1924 by cartoonist Harold T. Webster. Beginning a few years after the character's debut, the term milquetoast came to describe a timid or meek person. Caspar's last name is fitting because milk toast is a weak, bland concoction of buttered toast served in a dish of warm milk.

Examples of milquetoast in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Ian McEwan explored this gray territory in his novel Machines Like Me, where his milquetoast protagonist smilingly tolerates his robot's romantic overtures toward his love interest—until the threat of displacement becomes all too real. —Silvia Park, TIME, 10 Mar. 2025

The genesis of the legislation was a scandal: A newspaper published U.S. Supreme Court Justice nominee Robert Bork’s milquetoast video rental history during his confirmation hearings. —Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019

Adjective

McNairy convincingly plays a maddeningly milquetoast character whose indecision infuriates his wife and, by extension, the audience. —Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 10 Sep. 2024

President Biden and Speaker McCarthy came to terms on a rather milquetoast bipartisan agreement to raise the debt ceiling. —David Harsanyi, National Review, 8 June 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Caspar Milquetoast, comic strip character created by H. T. Webster †1952 American cartoonist

Adjective

from Caspar Milquetoast — more at milquetoast entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1935, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1931, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for milquetoast

• diagnosed
• easternmost
• innermost
• lowermost
• milepost
• northernmost
• outermost
• rearmost
• southernmost
• uppermost
• uttermost
• westernmost

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