milquetoast
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of milquetoast
1935–40, after Caspar Milquetoast, a character in The Timid Soul, comic strip by H. T. Webster (1885–1952), American cartoonist
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The 85-year-old label, tagged by the Observer as once being “synonymous with a particularly milquetoast suburban sensibility,” today posts fast-growing sales among famously fickle Gen Z shoppers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 25, 2026
Like King, the Bainbridge pastor was not advocating a milquetoast approach to governing.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 14, 2024
Maybe if Congress were run by a serious comic rather than a milquetoast politician, we might do better.
From Salon • Oct. 5, 2023
Shahid is a milquetoast in designer casual wear.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 5, 2023
O’Reilly’s replacement was Tucker Carlson, who, at the time, was probably best known as the boyish, milquetoast former co-host of Crossfire.
From Slate • Apr. 24, 2023
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
