pusillanimity
Lack of courage
Pusillanimity is cowardice or timidity—a lack of courage or resolve when facing difficulty.
The word is formal and somewhat literary, carrying a tone of moral judgment: pusillanimity isn't mere fear but a failure of character.
His pusillanimity in the face of injustice disappointed everyone who had believed in him.
Fearful lack of courage
- cravennessContemptible lack of bravery
- faintheartednessLacking resolve or nerve
- spinelessnessLack of courage
- gutlessnessLack of bravery
poltroonery · dastardliness · chickenheartedness · yellowness · unmanliness · timorousness · spiritlessness · cowardliness
Chronic state of dread
- apprehensivenessState of worried expectation
- trepidationFearful uncertainty
- nervousnessState of anxious unease
- timidnessState of being shy
fretfulness · worry · unease · disquiet · foreboding · jitteriness · agitation · qualms
Gentle, unassertive disposition
- docilityReadiness to submit
- servilityExcessive willingness to please
- obsequiousnessServile eagerness to please
- complianceAdhering to requirements
passivity · subservience · acquiescence · deference · pliability · spinelessness · yielding · tameness
Lack of strength
- ineffectualityInability to produce results
- impotenceLack of strength or power
- powerlessnessInability to affect outcomes
- helplessnessLacking ability to cope
enervation · debility · infirmity · incapacity · softness · flabbiness · lack of backbone · inadequacy
Failure to commit
- vacillationInability to choose
- hesitancyUnwillingness to proceed
- waveringShowing unsteady resolve
- ditheringProlonged indecisive hesitation
irresoluteness · equivocation · fence-sitting · shilly-shallying · wishy-washiness · ambivalence · second-guessing · flip-flopping
timidity
Fearful lack of courage
- cravennessContemptible lack of bravery
- faintheartednessLacking resolve or nerve
- spinelessnessLack of courage
gutlessness · poltroonery · dastardliness · chickenheartedness · yellowness · unmanliness · timorousness · spiritlessness · cowardliness · caitiff
fearfulness
Chronic state of dread
- apprehensivenessState of worried expectation
- trepidationFearful uncertainty
- nervousnessState of anxious unease
timidness · fretfulness · worry · unease · disquiet · foreboding · jitteriness · agitation · qualms · misgiving
meekness
Gentle, unassertive disposition
- docilityReadiness to submit
- servilityExcessive willingness to please
- obsequiousnessServile eagerness to please
compliance · passivity · subservience · acquiescence · deference · pliability · spinelessness · yielding · tameness · bootlicking
feebleness
Lack of strength
- ineffectualityInability to produce results
- impotenceLack of strength or power
- powerlessnessInability to affect outcomes
helplessness · enervation · debility · infirmity · incapacity · softness · flabbiness · lack of backbone · inadequacy · frailty
indecisiveness
Failure to commit
- vacillationInability to choose
- hesitancyUnwillingness to proceed
- waveringShowing unsteady resolve
dithering · irresoluteness · equivocation · fence-sitting · shilly-shallying · wishy-washiness · ambivalence · second-guessing · flip-flopping · tentativeness
- weaknessweakness, feebleness, frailty, debility, asthenia
- timiditybashfulness, shyness, timidness, timorousness, meekness
pusillanimitycourage
Fortitude facing danger
bravery · valor · fearlessness · intrepidity · gallantry
pusillanimityfortitude
Enduring courage under pain
mettle · grit · backbone · resolution · steadfastness