as in weak
lacking strength of will or character
argues that in a time of war, the country can't afford to have a weakling president
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as in coward
a person without strength of character
only a weakling would be willing to lie to save himself from punishment
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of weakling
Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 14 Feb. 2019
Only weaklings try to shut everybody up and scorch any kind of dissent.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 17 Apr. 2023
Though Ivory was a 118-pound teenage weakling uninterested in athletics, an approving steam-room glance from his father, who ran a lumber company, assured the son that his own endowment (cut, a distinction of some socioeconomic preoccupation) was more than adequate.
—Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times, 1 Nov. 2021
That transformed the storm from a wandering weakling into into roaring Super Typhoon with winds swirling at 160 mph.
—Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 31 July 2017
See all Example Sentences for weakling 
Noun
True to predictions, this El Niño is a weakling.
—Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 14 Feb. 2019
Only weaklings try to shut everybody up and scorch any kind of dissent.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 17 Apr. 2023
Though Ivory was a 118-pound teenage weakling uninterested in athletics, an approving steam-room glance from his father, who ran a lumber company, assured the son that his own endowment (cut, a distinction of some socioeconomic preoccupation) was more than adequate.
—Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times, 1 Nov. 2021
That transformed the storm from a wandering weakling into into roaring Super Typhoon with winds swirling at 160 mph.
—Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 31 July 2017
See all Example Sentences for weakling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for weakling
Adjective
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Of Vegas’ last eight games, six were at home and all eight were against some of the league’s weakest teams.Dom Luszczyszyn, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025
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China’s persistently low consumer inflation indicates that China is struggling with weak domestic demand, stoking fears of deflation.Yeo Boon Ping, CNBC, 9 Jan. 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
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The hard labor of making Wabanaki baskets Wabanaki basket-making isn’t for wimps.Debra Utacia Krol, USA TODAY, 29 Nov. 2024
Noun
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But then Gi-hun could die looking down on him as both a dog and a coward.Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 26 Dec. 2024
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The Vikings are cowards who didn't take a viking ship.Nick Suss, The Tennessean, 4 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Of the two sisters in the yellow house, Paula is a much gentler girl, a wuss, a baby, the biggest chicken—that’s how her sister thinks of her—and Rhonda is the boss.Alex Mar, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2023
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Teach, who carries a gun, is a wuss about the rain.New York Times, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2022
Noun
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Knox is a Great Pyrenees and Labrador mix who, despite weighing 77 pounds, is considered something of a softy.Gord Magill, Newsweek, 21 Dec. 2024
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For all her professional bravado, among those closest to her, Silverman is known as a sentimental softy.Amy Kaufman, Los Angeles Times, 30 Nov. 2023
Thesaurus Entries Near weakling
Cite this Entry
“Weakling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/weakling. Accessed 17 Jan. 2025.
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