poltroon

American  

[pol-troon] / pɒlˈtrun /

noun

1. a wretched coward; craven.

   Synonyms:

   dastard

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adjective

1. marked by utter cowardice.

poltroon British  

/ pɒlˈtruːn /

noun

1. an abject or contemptible coward

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adjective

1. a rare word for cowardly

Other Word Forms

• poltroonery
  noun
• poltroonish
  adjective
• poltroonishly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of poltroon

1520–30; earlier pultrowne, pultron, poultroone < Middle French poultron < Old Italian poltrone idler, coward, derivative of poltro foal < Vulgar Latin *pulliter, derivative of Latin pullus young animal; see foal

Explanation

A poltroon is a coward. Poltroons have a lack of courage and fortitude. Poltroon is an old-fashioned word for a type of person that exists in every time period: a coward. If you behave in a way that shows no courage or confidence, you're acting like a poltroon. In movies, the villains are often poltroons who are sneaky and devious instead of brave and straightforward. A hero is the opposite of a poltroon. Poltroons can be described as craven and abject, but most of all, cowardly.

Example Sentences

Then he retired to his State Room to weep over the Situation, and the British Subject said: "The American is a Poltroon, for he will not defend his own Hearth and Fireside."

From Knocking the Neighbors by Ade, George

Poltroon were he who had gone to bed before twelve on Noche-buena.

From Christmas: Its Origin and Associations Together with Its Historical Events and Festive Celebrations During Nineteen Centuries by Dawson, William Francis

Poltroon, pol-trōōn′, n. an idle, lazy fellow: a coward: a dastard: one without spirit.—adj. base, vile, contemptible.—n.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various

But the Poltroon with the white wig was not out of his Pother yet.

From The Strange Adventures of Captain Dangerous, Vol. 2 Who was a sailor, a soldier, a merchant, a spy, a slave among the moors... by Sala, George Augustus

If a single exception can destroy a general character, Hector was a Coward, and Anthony a Poltroon.

From Eighteenth Century Essays on Shakespeare by Smith, David Nichol