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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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
-
Harrison confidently adopts the take-no-prisoners physicality that makes Zephyr a worthy foe for Tucker, but her line readings are bland, doing nothing to enliven the basic script by Nick Lepard.—
Esther Zuckerman,
IndieWire,
17 May 2025
-
Bonnin serves up the same kind of comfort food Cécile’s parents serve to their truckers, easy to enjoy but ultimately a bit bland.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
13 May 2025
Adjective
-
The grand jury also criticizes city officials for weak oversight and enforcement of their contract with the Humane Society, which requires the nonprofit to enforce leash laws at 400 city parks and other venues.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
22 May 2025
-
Thanks to a weak front sliding across Central Florida, Thursday will be a bit cooler than prior days.—
Garfield Hylton,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 May 2025
Noun
-
Floundering in his career and stressed about planning his wedding, Yvan’s woes compound when his oldest friends turn their insults on him, calling him a coward, an amoeba and a fan of motel art.—
Emily McClanathan,
Chicago Tribune,
7 May 2025
-
That’s when one coward hit me from behind with a backpack.—
Brie Stimson , Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Belief that your institution is exempt from the hard, functional and often boring parts of the job leads to a slow decline.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
-
One ideal that rung loudly at the presentation was that these students were unafraid to dream–rather than send designs down the runway that felt truncated, trendy or downright boring, the student designers chose an opposite route.—
Robyn Mowatt,
Essence,
20 May 2025
Adjective
-
Iñárritu also used his Cannes visit as a soft launch for his next wild experiment, with Tom Cruise.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
21 May 2025
-
Some reactions might be softer and less pronounced, while others could be obsessive and overwhelming.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
21 May 2025
Noun
-
The wimps in the Republican Congress and Senate allowed this to happen.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
6 May 2025
-
Kelly, a bit of a spice wimp, needed sips of the sweet pickle lemonade to handle the heat.—
Kelly Tyko,
Axios,
3 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Brazil were insipid at last summer’s Copa America and have gone downhill since.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
16 May 2025
-
Little Dog asks, an insipid comparison that illuminates only the fungibility of abstract nouns.—
Andrea Long Chu,
Vulture,
6 May 2025
Noun
-
Based on this challenge, the groups would have been weaklings Cedrek, Star, Chrissy, Sai, Kamilla, and Mary in one group and Eva, Joe, Mitch, Kyle, David, and Shauhin in the strongman group.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
9 Apr. 2025
-
The fact these losers want to jail Andrew and Tristan Tate for preaching their version of traditional masculinity highlights the fact that these fascist feminists are fragile weaklings incapable of defending their position in the free marketplace of ideas.—
David Catanese,
Miami Herald,
20 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Namby-pamby.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/namby-pamby. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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