milquetoast

C2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈmɪlkˌtoʊst/ UK /ˈmɪlktəʊst/ See IPA manual

Freq #98036

Meanings

1

adj
meek or timid

I tried not to be the milquetoast spouse that some people thought I was.
2

noun
a person that is meek or timid

The milquetoast was compelled to act.
3

adj
Meek, timid; lacking character or effectiveness.

The truth is that we are cursed with a "milquetoast" Government operating under "milquetoast" policies. Fear has become a national policy.
4

adj
Alternative letter-case form of milquetoast.

If Bach had any guts, he wouldn't take that. He's too much of a Milquetoast guy.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

3 adj · meek, timid; lacking... feeble ineffectual insipid

Etymology

Named after Caspar Milquetoast, a character from the comic strip The Timid Soul, created by American cartoonist Harold Tucker Webster (1885–1952) and first published in 1924; the character was named after the American dish milk toast (“a food consisting of toasted bread in warm milk”).

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# milquetoast

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** adj, noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈmɪlkˌtoʊst/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈmɪlktəʊst/
**Frequency rank:** 98036

## Meanings
1. meek or timid
2. a person that is meek or timid
3. Meek, timid; lacking character or effectiveness.
4. Alternative letter-case form of milquetoast.

## Examples
- I tried not to be the milquetoast spouse that some people thought I was.
- The milquetoast was compelled to act.
- The truth is that we are cursed with a "milquetoast" Government operating under "milquetoast" policies. Fear has become a national policy.
- If Bach had any guts, he wouldn't take that. He's too much of a Milquetoast guy.

## Synonyms
- feeble
- ineffectual
- insipid

## Etymology
Named after Caspar Milquetoast, a character from the comic strip The Timid Soul, created by American cartoonist Harold Tucker Webster (1885–1952) and first published in 1924; the character was named after the American dish milk toast (“a food consisting of toasted bread in warm milk”).

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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