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View synonyms for

namby-pamby

[ nam-bee-pam-bee ]

adjective

  1. without firm methods or policy; weak or indecisive:

    namby-pamby handling of juvenile offenders.

  2. lacking in character, directness, or moral or emotional strength:

    namby-pamby writing.

  3. weakly sentimental, pretentious, or affected; insipid.


noun

plural namby-pambies
  1. a namby-pamby person:

    written by and for namby-pambies.

  2. namby-pamby sentiment:

    the harmless namby-pamby of a birthday card.

  3. namby-pamby verse or prose.

namby-pamby

/ ËŒ²Ôæ³¾²úɪˈ±èæ³¾²úɪ /

adjective

  1. sentimental or prim in a weak insipid way

    namby-pamby manners

  2. clinging, feeble, or spineless

    a namby-pamby child

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a person who is namby-pamby
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other ˜yÐÄvlogs From

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  • ²Ô²¹³¾î€ƒb²â-±è²¹³¾î€ƒb²â·¾±²õ³ó adjective
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˜yÐÄvlog History and Origins

Origin of namby-pamby1

First recorded in 1726; rhyming compound based on the first syllable of Ambrose Philips; first used as a nickname for Philips in the title of a poem by Henry Carey (1687?–1743) ridiculing his verse
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˜yÐÄvlog History and Origins

Origin of namby-pamby1

C18: a nickname of Ambrose Phillips (died 1749), whose pastoral verse was ridiculed for being insipid
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Example Sentences

“We need a food czar who’s tough, not these namby-pamby bureaucrats that don’t really want to ruffle any feathers.â€

From

The tackle was brilliant and set the tone for a proper game of football and not this namby-pamby interpretation of what modernists think the game should be.

From

Viewers are led to believe that, by refusing to get the shot, they're getting one over on those namby-pamby Democrats.

From

One that emphasizes the physical over namby-pamby paper-pushing, and speaks to old stereotypes of virility, strength and machismo.

From

She said her party suffers from "people who have been namby-pamby, lie down and allow the Democrats to walk all over them."

From

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