1
as in bland
lacking in qualities that make for spirit and character
she's such a namby-pamby nothing that it's no wonder she's never asked out
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in weak
lacking strength of will or character
mocked namby-pamby intellectuals who endlessly debate the pros and cons of everything and invariably end up accomplishing nothing
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in coward
a person without strength of character
those namby-pambies at city hall are never going to get serious about our crime problem
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Recent Examples of namby-pamby
John B. Judis, The New Republic, 19 Mar. 2023
Adjective
Walzer’s dissent was namby-pamby.
—John B. Judis, The New Republic, 19 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for namby-pamby
Adjective
-
If the bland season premiere is any indication, don’t expect many of those this year.—
Rebecca Jennings,
Vox,
13 Feb. 2025
-
Their beiges aren’t at all bland and boring—quite the opposite, actually.—
Shanna Shipin,
Glamour,
12 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
For example, an experimental receiver aboard the Blue Ghost lander acquired and tracked navigation signals from GPS satellites for the first time in lunar orbit, where these signals are 361 times weaker than on Earth.—
Kristin Shaw,
Ars Technica,
27 Feb. 2025
-
Salesforce shares fell in extended trading Wednesday on mixed quarterly results and weak guidance.—
Kevin Stankiewicz,
CNBC,
27 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The employees are spoiled and the investors are cowards.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
The New Yorker,
19 Feb. 2025
-
Meanwhile, Democrats — who are usually cowards when the subject is race — are afraid to defend DEI.—
Ruben Navarrette,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The whole thing also looks pretty—budget and midrange phones tend to be super boring, but the Pixel 8A has a smart design with a matte rear texture.—
Julian Chokkattu,
WIRED,
28 Feb. 2025
-
Buck is a loquacious, glad-handing oaf who has a boring way with a witty story, and is marked for death.—
Fred Schruers,
IndieWire,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Others are naked and seemingly unaware of the viewer, cigarettes in hand and gazes soft.—
Leah Asmelash,
CNN,
26 Feb. 2025
-
Their emphasis on key soft skill behaviors makes everybody in the organization much better—even the youngest, least experienced employees.—
Bruce Tulgan,
Forbes,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
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But the character, in Groening’s view, turned out to be a wimp.—
Darryn King,
Vulture,
17 Dec. 2024
-
The hard labor of making Wabanaki baskets Wabanaki basket-making isn’t for wimps.—
Debra Utacia Krol,
USA TODAY,
29 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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At the far extreme, there is the insipid libertarianism of Ron Paul, the former Texas representative, who has claimed that Marine detachments guarding U.S. embassies count as examples of military overstretch.—
Bret Stephens,
Foreign Affairs,
5 Feb. 2013
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The blandly positive lyrics seemed even more insipid amid all the bedroom jams.—
Eric Webb,
Austin American-Statesman,
1 June 2024
Noun
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Tinkerbell, who is seen as somewhat of a weakling in the Shrek films, is flattened against a lantern in the land which is also home to props previously only seen digitally on screen.—
Caroline Reid,
Forbes,
18 Jan. 2025
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What cinches this daring perspective is actor Andrew Scott’s phenomenal characterization as a weakling who grapples with gradual self-awareness.—
Armond White,
National Review,
29 Dec. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Namby-pamby.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/namby-pamby. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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