fainthearted

[feynt-hahr-tid]

adjective

1. lacking courage; cowardly; timorous.

Other Word Forms

• faintheartedly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of fainthearted¹

First recorded in 1400–50, fainthearted is from late Middle English feynt hertyd. See faint, hearted

Example Sentences

This is not the time to be fainthearted but to continue pressing the advantage.

From Los Angeles Times

But it's not for the fainthearted - or the claustrophobic.

From BBC

The treatment wasn't for the fainthearted, even among its proponents.

From Salon

However, life underground is not for the fainthearted.

From Scientific American

In his telling, the prosecutors come across as fainthearted, lacking “energy” and “enthusiasm,” and “relentlessly negative.”

From Washington Post