Skip to content
GREMockTests
GRE vocabulary

pusillanimous

adjectiveHigh-frequency wordMore P words

showing a lack of courage; timid and cowardly

Word origin: From Latin pusillus (very small) and animus (spirit).

Start a free GRE mock test 39 minutes · free · instant score
In a sentence

Pusillanimous in a sentence

Here are example sentences showing pusillanimous in a sentence.

Critics called the leadership pusillanimous for caving to threats.

The board's pusillanimous refusal to confront the problem only allowed it to worsen.

Synonyms
cowardlytimidfaintheartedcraven
Antonyms
bravecourageousbold

Quick GRE check

Question 1 of 3

3 questions, about 2 minutes. How would you do on the real test?

Verbal · Text Completion

The historian argued that the empire's collapse was not blank but the predictable outcome of decades of fiscal mismanagement that contemporaries had simply refused to acknowledge.

Select the word that best completes the sentence.

Usage & nuance

Using “pusillanimous” well

Pusillanimous is a strongly contemptuous word for cowardice and timidity, harsher than simply calling someone afraid.

Common questions

Questions about “pusillanimous”

Pusillanimous (adjective) means showing a lack of courage; timid and cowardly
Here is pusillanimous used in an example sentence: "Critics called the leadership pusillanimous for caving to threats." Another example: "The board's pusillanimous refusal to confront the problem only allowed it to worsen."
Common synonyms for pusillanimous include cowardly, timid, fainthearted, craven.
Antonyms of pusillanimous include brave, courageous, bold.
On the GRE, pusillanimous clusters with cowardly, timid, fainthearted, and craven, opposing brave, courageous, and bold.
Yes. Pusillanimous is a high-frequency GRE word, so it is worth prioritising as you build your vocabulary.

See these words the way the GRE tests them.

Take the free 39-minute GRE Quick Mock Test and meet words like this inside real Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence questions, with a worked solution for every answer.