pencil-neck
Feeble bookish type
Pencil-neck is a disparaging term for someone perceived as weak, nerdy, or physically unimposing—the image being a neck too thin to support much.
It suggests bookishness over athleticism, brain over brawn: Some pencil-neck bureaucrat rejected our application.
The compound adjective pencil-necked works the same way: pencil-necked geek.
Unattractively thin and bony
- skinnyVery thin, underweight
- thinSmall in diameter
- lankyTall and ungainly thin
- ganglyAwkwardly tall and thin
spindly · bony · gaunt · twiggy · wiry · slight · puny · underdeveloped
Obsessive enthusiast
pushover · milquetoast · egghead · four-eyes · dork · loser · twerp · runt
Lacking power or force
- feebleWeak and ineffective
- wimpyWeak and cowardly
- spinelessLacking courage or resolve
- timidLacking courage or confidence
meek · cowardly · gutless · soft · ineffectual · powerless · submissive · unassertive
Government administrative official
- bean-counterDerisive term for accountant
- paper-pusherClerical drone handling documents
- wonkSlang for specialist
- technocratSpecialist governing through expertise
number-cruncher · administrator · functionary · clerk · white-collar · suit · yes-man · lackey
scrawny
Unattractively thin and bony
gangly · spindly · bony · gaunt · twiggy · wiry · slight · puny · underdeveloped · beanpole
geek
Obsessive enthusiast
weakling · pushover · milquetoast · egghead · four-eyes · dork · loser · twerp · runt · shrimp
weak
Lacking power or force
timid · meek · cowardly · gutless · soft · ineffectual · powerless · submissive · unassertive · passive
bureaucrat
Government administrative official
- bean-counterDerisive term for accountant
- paper-pusherClerical drone handling documents
- wonkSlang for specialist
technocrat · number-cruncher · administrator · functionary · clerk · white-collar · suit · yes-man · lackey · apparatchik