Quick answer
Pusillanimous means showing a timid, cowardly, or small-spirited lack of courage. It is usually pronounced PUSILLANIMOUS, and today it is still readable to modern audiences rather than everyday speech.
Word page
Pusillanimous
Pusillanimous describes someone or something that is showing a timid, cowardly, or small-spirited lack of courage. It belongs to pompous and grandiloquent words and works best in formal mockery, pompous speeches, and sentences that want impressive weight. It still feels usable today, especially when you want a word with more character than the plainest alternative.
At a glance
pompousformalgrandiloquent
How to say it
Meaning in plain English
If something is pusillanimous, it is showing a timid, cowardly, or small-spirited lack of courage. The word usually adds a stronger tone than a simpler adjective, which is why it suits formal mockery, pompous speeches, and sentences that want impressive weight so well.
Why this word feels absurd
Pusillanimous feels absurd because it sounds slightly overengineered, as if English kept bolting on syllables until the word itself became part of the performance.
Origin and history
Pusillanimous is generally traced to origin uncertain. In modern use, the history matters less than the strong tone the word still carries.
Is this word still used today?
Pusillanimous is still used today, though it often turns up in more formal, literary, or analytical writing than in casual conversation.
Example sentences
- The review called the minister’s reply positively pusillanimous.
- One pusillanimous remark was enough to sour the entire meeting.
- The novel introduces a pusillanimous uncle who complains before breakfast.
- His pusillanimous tone made the ordinary objection sound much worse than it was.
- She likes the word because even the insult feels slightly theatrical when it is pusillanimous.
When should you use this word?
Use pusillanimous when you want a more vivid, characterful choice than the plain everyday alternative. It works especially well in formal mockery, pompous speeches, and sentences that want impressive weight.
Similar words
bloviation, bombast, calcified, contumelious, coruscating
Opposite or contrasting words
plain speech, brevity, simplicity
Why people search for this word
People usually search for pusillanimous because they have seen it in print, heard it aloud, or want to check whether its tone is comic, serious, archaic, or sharper than expected.
If that is why you landed here, compare it with Pompous and Grandiloquent Words, browse the stronger P-words, and follow Weird Words for Writers for nearby pages that answer the same kind of search intent.
How to use it correctly
Use pusillanimous when you want the meaning to land quickly and the tone to do a little extra work at the same time.
Keep the surrounding sentence simple, then branch out through Unusual English Words With Meanings, the Pompous and Grandiloquent Words shelf, and the P-words archive if you want close alternatives that still feel intentional rather than random.
That way the word sounds chosen for meaning and effect, not just dropped in because it looks unusual.
Common questions
- What does pusillanimous mean? Pusillanimous means showing a timid, cowardly, or small-spirited lack of courage.
- How do you use pusillanimous correctly? Use pusillanimous as an adjective when you want to label a person, mood, object, or remark more vividly than a plain equivalent would allow. Keep the surrounding sentence simple enough for the word to do the interesting work. If you want nearby alternatives, try Pompous and Grandiloquent Words , Words That Start With P , the Pompous and Grandiloquent Words archive, or the full word browser . Do not use it just because it looks unusual. Pusillanimous works best when the tone in your sentence matches the meaning: showing a timid, cowardly, or small-spirited lack of courage, not random ornament.
- How do you pronounce pusillanimous? It is commonly pronounced PUSILLANIMOUS.
- Is pusillanimous still used today? Pusillanimous still appears in modern English, but mostly when writers want extra tone, flavor, or historical color.
- What words are similar to pusillanimous? Related words include bloviation, bombast, calcified, contumelious.
Editorial note
Edited by Absurd Words. Last updated: May 9, 2026. See the editorial policy for how definitions, examples, labels, and update checks are handled on the site.