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
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Robin Tunney is technically the lead character as bland white witch Sarah, and sister sorceresses Neve Campbell and Rachel True are both delightful as Bonnie and Rochelle, but make no mistake, this is Fairuza Balk’s movie.Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2024
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The episodes themselves are bland, struggling to define the central location and its core characters in any way.Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Capasa noted that a negative third quarter impacted by weak internal demand, the slowdown of purchases from Chinese customers and overall geopolitical instability kept worsening the cautious scenario already registered in the first half of the year.Sandra Salibian, WWD, 11 Dec. 2024
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Scene-to-scene continuity is typically weak and telling.Lance Eliot, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
Noun
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This sick, twisted and evil coward showed no regard for Laken or human life.Audrey Conklin, Fox News, 20 Nov. 2024
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Numerous water bottles flew down toward the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. from the right-field corner stands, the gutless moves of many cowards.Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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But to play to that dichotomy is a tightrope walk: lean too far one way and Indy becomes boring, either as too normal or a superhero.Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 10 Dec. 2024
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Eggnog Eggnog is a hard sell because most people have only had the bad kind, those boring and occasionally gross cartons that line the dairy section of the supermarket every December.Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 9 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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This expands their volume, destroying cells and making their texture soft.Heather Jones, Verywell Health, 10 Dec. 2024
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Ripe pomegranates become soft and less resistant to cracking, so look for less firm fruits.Merve Ceylan, Health, 10 Dec. 2024
Noun
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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
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Compared to 88-year-old percussion master Pete Escovedo, Keith Sweat, John Michael Montgomery, Frankie Beverly and the members of the Eagles and Aventura seem like, well, wimps.George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Apr. 2024
Adjective
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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
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With the Netherlands’ starting options likely to be the insipid Wout Weghorst or the inconsistent Cody Gakpo, the 22-year-old Zirkzee could quickly find himself in the starting XI.The Athletic UK Staff, The Athletic, 24 Apr. 2024
Noun
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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
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But in a call with Mr. Licht after the meeting, Mr. Zaslav belittled Mr. Zucker as a weakling who had tears in his eyes, several people with knowledge of the conversation said.Benjamin Mullin, New York Times, 15 Nov. 2023
Thesaurus Entries Near namby-pamby
Cite this Entry
“Namby-pamby.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/namby-pamby. Accessed 18 Dec. 2024.
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