craven en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˈkɹeɪ.vən/
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Middle English cravant, either borrowed from Old French cravanté (“defeated”), past participle of cravanter (ultimately from Latin crepare), or a modification of creaunt (“defeated”) after craven (“to crave”).
Meanings
-
Unwilling to fight; lacking even the rudiments of courage; extremely cowardly.
Prime Minister Abe's fumbling and craven performance took place on a national holiday in Korea, marking the countrywide uprising against the Japanese colonial rule that began on March 1, 1919. March 1 is also the day in 1932 that Japan chose to inaugurate Manchukuo (after seizing northeastern China).
2010, Bruce Cumings, The Korean War:“But they’ve made some big carve-outs that are just absolute nonsense. There’s no perfect approach to content moderation, but they could at least try to look less transparently craven and incoherent.”
2020 October 12, Andrew Marantz, quoting Dave Willner, “Why Facebook Can’t Fix Itself”, in The New Yorker:The PP has seized on the possibility of an amnesty to rally support and to portray the PSOE leader as craven, dependent on Catalan separatists and hellbent on remaining in office.
2023 September 26, Sam Jones, “Spain elections: Feijóo launches doomed bid to lead country”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:To abet Trump’s fake reality, the craven House Republicans refused to put up a plaque honoring the police officers and others who defended the Capitol that awful day.
2025 May 31, Maureen Dowd, “Tech Bro Had to Go”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:The poor craven bridegroom said never a word.
1808 February 22, Walter Scott, “(please specify the introduction or canto number, or chapter name)”, in Marmion; a Tale of Flodden Field, Edinburgh: […] J[ames] Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable and Company, […]; London: William Miller, and John Murray, →OCLC:Now, I hold no candle for the train operators, and I think that in the main they have been far too craven about any government proposals. But in this instance, they have been badly traduced, led up the hill, and then chucked back down it.
2023 November 15, Christian Wolmar, “Ministers should carry the can for ticket office fiasco”, in RAIL, number 996, page 47:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most craven | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more craven | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Deriveds
cravenly · cravenness · cry craven · uncraven
Synonyms
timid · nidering · dickless · ratlike · chickenshit · timorous · pussylike · kiasi · milk-livered · milky · cowhearted · niddering · cringey · backboneless · niding · pigeon-livered · yellow-bellied · poor-spirited · poltroonish · liver-faced · cowardy · chicken-hearted · retromingent · sissy · hen-hearted · chicken-livered · white-hearted · nerveless · caitiff · invalorous · dough-faced · nithing · unhearty · cowardly · punk · white-livered · lily-livered · heartless · cravenhearted · rabbit-hearted · dastardly · liver-hearted · miching · wimpish · yellow · mouse-hearted · bitch-ass · craven · fainthearted · gutless · base · low-hearted · soft · mousy · pusillanimous · dastard · courageless · cowardish · invertebrate · boneless · spineless · gizzardless · weak-kneed · cowish · chicken · nutless · recrayed · fraidy · candy-assed · fearful
Translations (20)
sh Kukavica (extremely cowardly) · fi pelkurimainen (extremely cowardly) · mk пла́шлив (extremely cowardly) · sv feg (extremely cowardly) · pt covarde (extremely cowardly) · fr lâche (extremely cowardly) · de feige (extremely cowardly) · nl lafhartig (extremely cowardly) · mk мало́душен (extremely cowardly) · cs zbabělý (extremely cowardly) · ga meata (extremely cowardly) · sv mesig (extremely cowardly) · yi פּחדניש (extremely cowardly) · bg страхлив (extremely cowardly) · es cobarde (extremely cowardly) · sh plašljivac (extremely cowardly) · eo poltrona (extremely cowardly) · uk малоду́шний (extremely cowardly) · eo malkuraĝa (extremely cowardly) · ru малоду́шный (extremely cowardly)