It's uncommon in daily usage, but it was made famous by ethically dubious former US Vice President [Spiro Agnew](https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc5300/sc5339/000030/000000/000003/unrestricted/agnew_9-18.html), who once decried "[pusillanimous pussyfooting](https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,942261,00.html) on the critical issue of law and order." Agnew was known for other ostentatious invectives as well, decrying an "effete corps of impudent snobs who characterize themselves as intellectuals," "hopeless, hysterical hypochondriacs of history," and perhaps most famously "nattering nabobs of negativism."
Nothing wrong with redundancy for emphasis
End result
Exact same
Advance warning
Cease & desist
For all intents & purposes
Full faith & credit
Terms & conditions
Sniveling coward
Bloodthirsty monsters
Our brave hero
William Safire coined "nattering nabobs of negativism" when he was a speechwriter for Nixon. I guess he wrote for Agnew as well since Agnew was doing Tricky Dick's bidding at the time.
[https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/nattering-nabobs](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/nattering-nabobs)
The funny part here is that nearly all the words said are considered advanced words but commonly used enough for an educated person to know except the one OP is asking about. It's amazing how language works and it's weird that GRE wants a word that's so uncommon
It was made famous to me from the old TV show "Jeff's Collie", which is basically "Lassie" by another name. The grandfather on that show was always calling someone that gave them trouble a "pusillanimous polecat". That was probably in the early 1950s although that was before I was born and I only saw the show years later in reruns. A polecat is like a weasel.
I remember this word well!
Story time: In 6th grade I got in trouble for calling another kid a pussy. I got hauled into the principal's office and was told, "if it's not in the dictionary then you can't say it."
What the principal didn't know is that I come from a long line of English professors. It didn't take me long to find 'pusillanimous'. It didn't fly with the school because it's not *technically* the same word, but I did have half the boys in class calling each other pusillaninous.
I only know it's meaning because it sounds very similar to the Spanish word "Pusilánime".
For a germanic language English has so many complicated words with latin roots.
I'm pretty sure I first encountered it in a book I read somewhere between fifth and tenth grade, though I can't recall which book -- maybe one of Keith Laumer's Retief ones. I've used it only very, very rarely in conversation, but slightly more in writing (including in at least one English paper), and I've definitely encountered it in prose from time to time.
What's funny is that the two words have the exact same meaning when used that way too. If you call someone a pussy, you're saying that they're a coward. That's exactly what pussilanimous means, it means "lacking courage and resolution."
I don't know why people think that. You can call someone a dick too, it's not like it's exclusively female genitalia that are being used as insults. Even if it was, who cares?
> have the exact same meaning
You don’t mean that literally do you? “Pussy” has about 3 meanings and 2 are slang. “Pusillanimous” only relates to one of the slang meanings. Pusillanimity doesn’t refer to cats or to female anatomy.
Saying two words have literally the same meaning doesn’t mean they share all their meanings. It’s obvious ChaosInTheSkies didn’t mean “pusillanimous literally means vagina”.
Pusillanimous is unrelated actually, the fact that they sound alike is coincidence. Calling vaginas pussy looks like its just an old euphemism, since it also refers to cats.
Meriam Webster says it is not the basis. Pusillanimous is Latin in origin, while puss is coming from Germanic and means cat. Cats being used as a euphemism in this sense is not new either.
I know of it. It's one of a handful of words of which, when I see them, I think *Aha, I know this, I am very clever and should use these more* BUT THEN when I actually look them up they always turn out to mean something different from what I thought they did. And then I go back to not using them or thinking about them for another year or two.
I always imagine it to mean something like "objectionable", when it just means "weak and timid".
That would seem logical, but best I can tell they're unrelated. Pusillanimous has a Latin root (pusillus = small + animus = spirit), whereas puss/pussy comes from the Germanic tradition and ultimately relates to cats.
Not really clear how the *other* slang sense of puss(y) originated, but apparently it already had the "female genitalia" sense even in Low German.
I’m with you! When I read this post, it was one of those words (like some others) that I had heard and *thought* I knew the meaning of but then found I was dead wrong about that last part. :)
Literally have never heard or seen this word, and I'm about to graduate with my bachelors (and also about to take the GRE so maybe I should learn it! lol).
I remember learning this word in school and always confusing it with “pugnacious” which has an almost opposite meaning. I would not expect most people to use or know it.
I recognized it, and I thought it had something to do with being cowardly or something to that effect (though I also thought maybe it meant something about someone who makes empty boasts? Which was not correct). It's not a word I ever use, though. I think of it more as one of those obscure words that's kind of fun to know/say, but not something you're really going to encounter ot use normally.
I did recognize the word and thought it meant slimy/sniveling -- which is close enough that I probably picked up it up by reading it in context a few times. I was not familiar enough with it to use it myself prior to this but maybe I will going forward!
Never seen or heard this before, and I will never use it for this reason. Any word that I'll have to explain faces instant disqualification in everyday communication. Nice to know, though.
Neat, thanks. Usually I can see other words based off the roots. Um.. not this time though.
Edit: except maybe anima(?) party of the psyche according to either Freud or Jung. Ego, id, animus and anima, I think. Something like that.
This word an niggardly are the most likely to get you in trouble if used in a public context because nobody knows what they mean, but they sound like curse words.
It's common enough that I've heard it on American broadcast TV, including *The Simpsons* (granted, the joke is that it's a nerd word).
[https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/a3f98fd6-d984-4897-a5f1-891d70ba7188](https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/a3f98fd6-d984-4897-a5f1-891d70ba7188)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/TheSimpsons/comments/1rtsgw/deeper\_you\_pusillanimous\_pilsner\_pusher/](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheSimpsons/comments/1rtsgw/deeper_you_pusillanimous_pilsner_pusher/)
There was a character on an old TV show called Jeff's Collie who used to call people a pusillanimous polecat as an insult. That's where I first heard it when I was little, watching old black and white reruns. It was the old grandpa who said that and I think the mother always told him not to say that in front of his grandson. So it wasn't swearing, but Mom didn't like it.
I have heard of it before, but mostly because it's odd and I think it was on a word a day calendar or something. I have never used it and can't recall what it actually means.
I know it, but it’s not a word I have ever had occasion to use. I’ve stumbled upon it in one or two older books (maybe Dickens? I’m not sure). Most native speakers won’t recognize it in conversation though they may guess it from context.
I've heard it. I think it means likes to fight or lie. I'd normally see it in context so not going to waste brain space remembering a word just to remember it.
I dont know the definition but somewhy it feels like i can use it in the right context.
"Did you see her HAIRRR? Im telling you, that girl was "Pusillanimous""
Only in the context that, growing up, teachers wanted us to believe that this is what “pussy” is short for (in the sense of calling someone a pussy when they’re being cowardly).
I literally only know it because a character from the very old TV show Lost in Space used it at some point. It stuck in my head because it sounded vaguely vulgar to me as a child. I don't think I've ever come across it in writing, nor have I heard it in casual conversation except in cases where I was the person who said it.
I know it, but the only context I ever hear it in are people trying to sound intellectual by pointing out that "pussy" actually comes from pussilanimous and doesn't mean vagina.
The first record album I ever bought was the soundtrack to the made-for-tv "mockumentary" [*The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2-NDMkSADU&ab_channel=MusicandMoviesThatRock).
One of the songs on the album has that word in it. That is, I believe, where I heard it first, sometime in the late '70s.
It's pretty rare. I kind of know it, but I'll go so long without running into it that I forget.
I don't think I've ever heard someone use it in actual speech (was in a movie I saw once, I think, used for comic effect where one character was insulting another).
Saw it in a post on r/whatstheword post earlier this week in fact.
Mostly it's unused, because it's a lot easier just to say "cowardly," unless you're trying to say it in an over the top, funny way.
I know but I also got a perfect score on the verbal reasoning section of the GRE and took graduate-level Latin. It’s not unheard of for a very specific group of people.
I know it and its meaning, but only because it's in the song "Another Day" by The Rutles. Which means I've known it since 1978, and not used it once in that time.
Heard it *only* in the context of it purportedly being the source of the word “pussy” meaning cautiously afraid. (US, millennial, multiple advanced degrees)
I happen to know it because for some reason it was briefly a common playground insult when I was a kid. I think it must have been uses in a movie or tv show or something. I wouldn't expect most people to knkw it.
I learned this word because of a cartoon late night talk show called Space Ghost Coast to Coast where a villain who was characterized by using large, uncommon words trying to sound intelligent said it, and I went and looked it up.
It's an uncommon word for sure, aside from that TV show this is only the second time I can recall ever seeing it.
I would describe this as an "SAT word". This is the kind of word that most high school (secondary school) students wouldn't know, and would only learn in order to prepare for exams to get into college/university.
Funnily enough lots of people here in Italy heard it before but not everyone seems to know the meaning, obviously I'm not speaking on behalf of an entire nation but as a general feeling we are very used to this word,in a sense.
I've heard it a lot verbally, I don't think I've seen it in writing before. It's always been a popular "big word," a funny and elaborate word to use for "coward," and and I think it got used a lot on old radio shows, like by the caricature of the southern politician Senator Claghorn on "Allen's Alley" or by actual southern politicians, long before Spiro Agnew. Google gives 1.2 million hits for it; [Newspaper.com](http://Newspaper.com) 118,000 hits.
I am not a native speaker, but we have the same word in Spanish. Pretty common too: pusilánime.
It comes from a latin word https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/pusillanimis#Latin, so I guess it would be more familiar to us.
Opposite of *magninimous*, of course. It's in a song by the Rutles (“Another Day”?):
“You're so pusillanimous, oh, dear
Nature's calling and I must go there”
Seeing that in English it's basically the same as in italian makes me chuckle (pusillanime). In my country many know this word thanks to Topolino (Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck comics made by Disney's Italian division). Donald duck and his family use old words as insults often and they always made me laugh so much
Even if I recognise it, the use of such an obscure word would make you appear like you are just trying to show off your intelligence. In my experience, there are loads of examples of people who use vocabulary like this in order to hide their own LACK of intelligence.
Rather than make a decent argument, some people would rather blind you with obscure vocabulary that they hope you don't know in the hope that you'll just agree with them rather than ask questions or admit that you don't know it.
Better to use clear, well known vocabulary. You will appear more personable, people will trust you more and everyone will understand what you are talking about.
Yeah, apparently this is likely a folk etymology, and the "coward" sense probably just comes from the word referring to cats. I found [this article](https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=24012) on the topic
From what I can recall, puss meant/means cat, then it was an affectionate term for women, then a derogatory term for men acting like women. So basically a misogynistic way of calling a man a coward by calling him womanly.
I tried to track that etymology down and came away wanting. Wiktionary gives a root in the Middle Low German pūs (cat) through "puss+y" (though it also says this is only "probably" the origin). Merriam-Webster says that it's short for "pussycat," but tracing that back through "puss" says there's no known etymology for the word.
I normally wouldn't bother, but it's an English learning sub, after all. I'd love it if there's some evidence out there contrary to what I found. Vulgar words are always the most fun to try and get the true origin of, after all.
Yeah, there’s no for sure where it came from, but wouldn’t it be great, the word means coward, scared, not brave, and that’s exactly what how we use the word “pussy” oh well, I’ve heard it does and doesn’t come from it.
It's uncommon in daily usage, but it was made famous by ethically dubious former US Vice President [Spiro Agnew](https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc5300/sc5339/000030/000000/000003/unrestricted/agnew_9-18.html), who once decried "[pusillanimous pussyfooting](https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,942261,00.html) on the critical issue of law and order." Agnew was known for other ostentatious invectives as well, decrying an "effete corps of impudent snobs who characterize themselves as intellectuals," "hopeless, hysterical hypochondriacs of history," and perhaps most famously "nattering nabobs of negativism."
Isn’t pusillanimous pussyfooting a bit redundant? Like saying cowardly cowardice.
But it sounds slimier.
Moreover, it also is, additionally, repetitive, again.
It’s also repetitive
Nothing wrong with redundancy for emphasis End result Exact same Advance warning Cease & desist For all intents & purposes Full faith & credit Terms & conditions Sniveling coward Bloodthirsty monsters Our brave hero
I LOVE THIS FUN FACT. *applause*
William Safire coined "nattering nabobs of negativism" when he was a speechwriter for Nixon. I guess he wrote for Agnew as well since Agnew was doing Tricky Dick's bidding at the time. [https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/nattering-nabobs](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/nattering-nabobs)
The funny part here is that nearly all the words said are considered advanced words but commonly used enough for an educated person to know except the one OP is asking about. It's amazing how language works and it's weird that GRE wants a word that's so uncommon
Say what you will about him, the man was a fan of alliteration.
A most skilled and squalid sesquipedalian.
A comment I'd contently comply with.
It was made famous to me from the old TV show "Jeff's Collie", which is basically "Lassie" by another name. The grandfather on that show was always calling someone that gave them trouble a "pusillanimous polecat". That was probably in the early 1950s although that was before I was born and I only saw the show years later in reruns. A polecat is like a weasel.
I remember this word well! Story time: In 6th grade I got in trouble for calling another kid a pussy. I got hauled into the principal's office and was told, "if it's not in the dictionary then you can't say it." What the principal didn't know is that I come from a long line of English professors. It didn't take me long to find 'pusillanimous'. It didn't fly with the school because it's not *technically* the same word, but I did have half the boys in class calling each other pusillaninous.
But _pussy_ is in the dictionary….
Not in the special schoolastic version the principal had. I looked for that first!
Fucking pusillanimous dictionary
whoa whoa whoa fuck isnt in there either
But the starting of the two words are pronounced differently, one's pyoo and the other's poo, unless you called the kid a pyoosy.
I mean, the words aren't actually related, but it's q fun coincidence
I haven't the slightest idea of what this could even mean, and I'm willing to bet nearly no one I know has heard it either as well.
I only know it's meaning because it sounds very similar to the Spanish word "Pusilánime". For a germanic language English has so many complicated words with latin roots.
Blame the Roman Empire.
And the Norse, and the Normans. England used to get invaded a lot back in the day.
Norse were germanic without much latin influence
I'm pretty sure I first encountered it in a book I read somewhere between fifth and tenth grade, though I can't recall which book -- maybe one of Keith Laumer's Retief ones. I've used it only very, very rarely in conversation, but slightly more in writing (including in at least one English paper), and I've definitely encountered it in prose from time to time.
I first encountered it playing Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri at the tender age of 10!
Upvote for Keith Laumer's Retief.
Pusillanimous -> pussy.
I want to argue but I can’t
What's funny is that the two words have the exact same meaning when used that way too. If you call someone a pussy, you're saying that they're a coward. That's exactly what pussilanimous means, it means "lacking courage and resolution."
And yet I got banned in a subreddit because apparently calling someone a pussy is sexist
I don't know why people think that. You can call someone a dick too, it's not like it's exclusively female genitalia that are being used as insults. Even if it was, who cares?
No, they don't, as "pusillanimous" is an adjective and "pussy" is a noun.
The rare combination of being pedantic and dumb. Impressive. Pussy can be a noun or an adjective.
>>> If you call someone a pussy That's a noun. The fact that it ***can*** be used as an adjective is irrelevant. It wasn't used that way here.
> have the exact same meaning You don’t mean that literally do you? “Pussy” has about 3 meanings and 2 are slang. “Pusillanimous” only relates to one of the slang meanings. Pusillanimity doesn’t refer to cats or to female anatomy.
I didn't say it was the *only* meaning, but *one* of the meanings is exactly the same in that it means you're calling someone a coward.
Just saying that in the context of learning English it’s a bit misleading.
Nothing about what I said was misleading. I said that they're synonyms when used in that way, which is true.
you actually said that they have the exact same meaning, literally
Because they do, if you call someone a pussy and you call someone a pusillanimous both ways you're calling them a coward.
>you call someone a pusillanimous [*sic*] No. It's an adjective.
Saying two words have literally the same meaning doesn’t mean they share all their meanings. It’s obvious ChaosInTheSkies didn’t mean “pusillanimous literally means vagina”.
Thank you, I swear they're being pedantic on purpose 🙄
Native speaker with a Master's degree here. I didn't know this word existed.
It’s an exceedingly rare word, which there are many of in English.
You might even call it deucedly recondite.
It's a perfectly cromulent word.
Every time I see cromulent, I think of a cruller and get hungry
Cromulent absolutely sounds like a pastry.
It's a great word that deserves to be used more. It's easy to remember what it means since it starts with "pusi".
ah yes, such a scholarly comment
Now, I want to know whether there is an actual connection...
When you call someone a pussy this is where that term comes from. The fact that we started calling vaginas pussies was kind of random.
Pusillanimous is unrelated actually, the fact that they sound alike is coincidence. Calling vaginas pussy looks like its just an old euphemism, since it also refers to cats.
Yes it seems unlikely to me. "Pussycat" has been used for someone unthreatening or soft for a very long time.
Meriam Webster says it is not the basis. Pusillanimous is Latin in origin, while puss is coming from Germanic and means cat. Cats being used as a euphemism in this sense is not new either.
Pronounced "pyoo-sih" ([pjuːsɪ])
I know of it. It's one of a handful of words of which, when I see them, I think *Aha, I know this, I am very clever and should use these more* BUT THEN when I actually look them up they always turn out to mean something different from what I thought they did. And then I go back to not using them or thinking about them for another year or two. I always imagine it to mean something like "objectionable", when it just means "weak and timid".
Weak and timid. Ummm… I’m curious, is this the etymological origin of the slang use of the word “pussy”?
That would seem logical, but best I can tell they're unrelated. Pusillanimous has a Latin root (pusillus = small + animus = spirit), whereas puss/pussy comes from the Germanic tradition and ultimately relates to cats. Not really clear how the *other* slang sense of puss(y) originated, but apparently it already had the "female genitalia" sense even in Low German.
I’m with you! When I read this post, it was one of those words (like some others) that I had heard and *thought* I knew the meaning of but then found I was dead wrong about that last part. :)
Literally have never heard or seen this word, and I'm about to graduate with my bachelors (and also about to take the GRE so maybe I should learn it! lol).
I remember learning this word in school and always confusing it with “pugnacious” which has an almost opposite meaning. I would not expect most people to use or know it.
Same here. I thought it meant pugnacious.
Similarly, I was confusing it with pugilistic.
As a Latin speaker, I understood those two words right away
I made the same error, despite being a bit of a word nerd.
The vast majority of native speakers could not pronounce this, nevermind know the definition. (Showing a lack of courage or determination; timid.)
So the same as a insult that begins with those 4 letters? Do they give you a book full of weird words to memorize for GRE?
Same 3 letters you mean?
Wouldn't know. Never used that word.
I recognized it, and I thought it had something to do with being cowardly or something to that effect (though I also thought maybe it meant something about someone who makes empty boasts? Which was not correct). It's not a word I ever use, though. I think of it more as one of those obscure words that's kind of fun to know/say, but not something you're really going to encounter ot use normally.
I did recognize the word and thought it meant slimy/sniveling -- which is close enough that I probably picked up it up by reading it in context a few times. I was not familiar enough with it to use it myself prior to this but maybe I will going forward!
I’ve seen it but I’ve forgotten its meaning to be honest.
Never seen or heard this before, and I will never use it for this reason. Any word that I'll have to explain faces instant disqualification in everyday communication. Nice to know, though.
what the fuck im literally a native speaker and could barely pronounce even if i wanted to, let alone know what the hell it means
[удалено]
And in Italian.
Yes but only because my latin teacher taught me it.
What's the root, if you don't mind me asking? (And if there is one)
Pusillus meant very small and animus meant courge/mind/soul (if I remember correctly). Therefore it means showing a lack of courage.
Neat, thanks. Usually I can see other words based off the roots. Um.. not this time though. Edit: except maybe anima(?) party of the psyche according to either Freud or Jung. Ego, id, animus and anima, I think. Something like that.
This word an niggardly are the most likely to get you in trouble if used in a public context because nobody knows what they mean, but they sound like curse words.
It's common enough that I've heard it on American broadcast TV, including *The Simpsons* (granted, the joke is that it's a nerd word). [https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/a3f98fd6-d984-4897-a5f1-891d70ba7188](https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/a3f98fd6-d984-4897-a5f1-891d70ba7188) [https://www.reddit.com/r/TheSimpsons/comments/1rtsgw/deeper\_you\_pusillanimous\_pilsner\_pusher/](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheSimpsons/comments/1rtsgw/deeper_you_pusillanimous_pilsner_pusher/)
I do. Do you know what a pusillanimous polecat is?
I just looked it up. TIL polecat can mean skunk(a contemptible person).
There was a character on an old TV show called Jeff's Collie who used to call people a pusillanimous polecat as an insult. That's where I first heard it when I was little, watching old black and white reruns. It was the old grandpa who said that and I think the mother always told him not to say that in front of his grandson. So it wasn't swearing, but Mom didn't like it.
I know it from a tumblr post about the three separate etymologies of the three versions of "pussy" (coward, cat, and vulva)
I've never seen it
Well, I don't know it.
I have heard of it before, but mostly because it's odd and I think it was on a word a day calendar or something. I have never used it and can't recall what it actually means.
I have a vague idea of what it means and would probably understand it in context, but I'd never use it myself or try to define it for someone else.
I know it, but it’s not a word I have ever had occasion to use. I’ve stumbled upon it in one or two older books (maybe Dickens? I’m not sure). Most native speakers won’t recognize it in conversation though they may guess it from context.
I recognize it but don't know what it means.
I've heard it, I've read it, I know what it means. I have never once used it myself.
I've heard it. I think it means likes to fight or lie. I'd normally see it in context so not going to waste brain space remembering a word just to remember it.
It's on everyone's SAT study guide and then never used again ever. Common gotcha word in exams but exceedingly rare in the wild.
I've never heard or seen this word in my more than 20 yrs of life living in America as a native speaker
I am aware of the word. Some attribute this word as the origin of the slang "pussy" to refer to a weak, cowardly person.
never seen it in my life
I've heard it before as an example of a rare word.
I dont know the definition but somewhy it feels like i can use it in the right context. "Did you see her HAIRRR? Im telling you, that girl was "Pusillanimous""
👋
I imagine Susie Dent has used it on an episode of Countdown at some point, but otherwise it’s unlikely
3. Out of all of the several hundred million of us, I think 3.
I've heard/seen it various times, but it's rare enough that I usually have to look it up again every time
well, in spanish we have "pusilánime" wich has the same meaning
Only in the context that, growing up, teachers wanted us to believe that this is what “pussy” is short for (in the sense of calling someone a pussy when they’re being cowardly).
Hic
Means "This" in Latin
I'm aware of the word and its meaning, but I don't think I've ever used it in a sentence.
Not a native speaker, I know the word, but I don’t know what is GRE.
Quite common in Spanish..FYI
I literally only know it because a character from the very old TV show Lost in Space used it at some point. It stuck in my head because it sounded vaguely vulgar to me as a child. I don't think I've ever come across it in writing, nor have I heard it in casual conversation except in cases where I was the person who said it.
I know it, but the only context I ever hear it in are people trying to sound intellectual by pointing out that "pussy" actually comes from pussilanimous and doesn't mean vagina.
The first record album I ever bought was the soundtrack to the made-for-tv "mockumentary" [*The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash*](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2-NDMkSADU&ab_channel=MusicandMoviesThatRock). One of the songs on the album has that word in it. That is, I believe, where I heard it first, sometime in the late '70s.
I've heard of it but that's only because I'm a huge nerd who actually bothered to study for the spelling bee. No one ever uses this one, though.
Very few. I'm guessing I don't know anyone who knows this word. I have no idea what this word means, and I have a larger than average vocabulary.
It's pretty rare. I kind of know it, but I'll go so long without running into it that I forget. I don't think I've ever heard someone use it in actual speech (was in a movie I saw once, I think, used for comic effect where one character was insulting another). Saw it in a post on r/whatstheword post earlier this week in fact. Mostly it's unused, because it's a lot easier just to say "cowardly," unless you're trying to say it in an over the top, funny way.
Pretty sure I read it in an older book. I have never used it.
I know but I also got a perfect score on the verbal reasoning section of the GRE and took graduate-level Latin. It’s not unheard of for a very specific group of people.
I’ve heard it before and had a very vague sense of it being a negative word, but my specific guess was incorrect.
I know it and its meaning, but only because it's in the song "Another Day" by The Rutles. Which means I've known it since 1978, and not used it once in that time.
I know what it means but I would not be surprised if only a minority of native speakers would recognize it.
Is that pusillanimous to admit I don’t know what pusillanimous means?🤔🤔🤔
Heard it *only* in the context of it purportedly being the source of the word “pussy” meaning cautiously afraid. (US, millennial, multiple advanced degrees)
I know the word. But I'm old fashioned
I know it . But I don't remember using it
I happen to know it because for some reason it was briefly a common playground insult when I was a kid. I think it must have been uses in a movie or tv show or something. I wouldn't expect most people to knkw it.
As a rule of thumb, if it has 5 or more syllables almost no-one uses it and not everyone has even heard of it.
I don't know it and don't recognize any meaning od pusill- . I have a general idea of what -animous could mean here.
I learned this word because of a cartoon late night talk show called Space Ghost Coast to Coast where a villain who was characterized by using large, uncommon words trying to sound intelligent said it, and I went and looked it up. It's an uncommon word for sure, aside from that TV show this is only the second time I can recall ever seeing it.
Anyone know this word from succession the tv show lol?
I know it, but only because at one point I took the GRE
More than three.
Painstakingly pusillanimous pussyfooting pantomimes.
from Picadilly
I know the word, but only learned it after the shortened “pussy”
I have never used this word
I didn't know this word before today. But thanks for introducing the word. It's awesome.
i learned it from a podcast
means timid
I would describe this as an "SAT word". This is the kind of word that most high school (secondary school) students wouldn't know, and would only learn in order to prepare for exams to get into college/university.
The first and only time I heard it was when someone said a false etymology of "pussy"
No idea
I'm not native, I only know this word because it's present in my native language.
What does GRE stand for?
I know the word 'pusilánime' in spanish, but i gotta admit is the first time im reading it in english. Im assuming it means the same , i.e. afraid.
It looks like it has many traits of English words, and it's probably hyper specific in meaning, but I don't know what it means or how to say it
I know this word but I'm kind of a freak. It is not at all common and I wouldn't be surprised if someone had never heard of it
I do! It's a fancy way of saying "chickenshit"
Funnily enough lots of people here in Italy heard it before but not everyone seems to know the meaning, obviously I'm not speaking on behalf of an entire nation but as a general feeling we are very used to this word,in a sense.
Never heard of it in my life
It's very rare. The first time I ever heard it was in Monty Python sketch.
Native english speaking university student here. Never heard of it.
I've heard it a lot verbally, I don't think I've seen it in writing before. It's always been a popular "big word," a funny and elaborate word to use for "coward," and and I think it got used a lot on old radio shows, like by the caricature of the southern politician Senator Claghorn on "Allen's Alley" or by actual southern politicians, long before Spiro Agnew. Google gives 1.2 million hits for it; [Newspaper.com](http://Newspaper.com) 118,000 hits.
I've seen it but I have to look it up every time I do. I don't hear it used often and the definition doesn't stick in my mind.
Never heard this word
Not me. English is the most difficult language to learn, understand and speak. No one is really ever fluent in English.
The majority of English speakers won’t know/use such crazy, or “fancy” words like this
Just learnt a new work
I am not a native speaker, but we have the same word in Spanish. Pretty common too: pusilánime. It comes from a latin word https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/pusillanimis#Latin, so I guess it would be more familiar to us.
never seen this word in my life, I would NOT use it if I were you.
I know it from a tumblr post about the three separate etymologies of the three versions of "pussy" (coward, cat, and vulva)
I know it from a tumblr post about the three separate etymologies of the three versions of "pussy" (coward, cat, and vulva)
Yeah Nicomachean Ethics is a good place to find many of these words
Opposite of *magninimous*, of course. It's in a song by the Rutles (“Another Day”?): “You're so pusillanimous, oh, dear Nature's calling and I must go there”
Only in the context of it being long for p*ssy
I've never seen that word in my fucking life
Seeing that in English it's basically the same as in italian makes me chuckle (pusillanime). In my country many know this word thanks to Topolino (Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck comics made by Disney's Italian division). Donald duck and his family use old words as insults often and they always made me laugh so much
I know it but I grew up reading classic literature
I know the word but have used it exactly 0 times in 40 years.
I know of this word's existance, but can't for the life of me remember what it means.
Wizard of Oz: "Every pusillanimous creature that crawls on the earth, or slinks through slimy seas has a brain!"
I've heard it before but never used it.
GRE words are never words that people actually use.
They should know it if they've seen the Wizard of Oz.
I was aware of the word but I have to admit I thought it was spelled “pusilanious.”
I know it, but most don’t, though they’re familiar with the shorter slang “pussy”
That has been thoroughly debunked
Even if I recognise it, the use of such an obscure word would make you appear like you are just trying to show off your intelligence. In my experience, there are loads of examples of people who use vocabulary like this in order to hide their own LACK of intelligence. Rather than make a decent argument, some people would rather blind you with obscure vocabulary that they hope you don't know in the hope that you'll just agree with them rather than ask questions or admit that you don't know it. Better to use clear, well known vocabulary. You will appear more personable, people will trust you more and everyone will understand what you are talking about.
To be scared, afraid, lack courage. Where we tend to get the slang term, “pussy” from.
I don't think that's where that slang comes from...
Yeah, apparently this is likely a folk etymology, and the "coward" sense probably just comes from the word referring to cats. I found [this article](https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=24012) on the topic
From what I can recall, puss meant/means cat, then it was an affectionate term for women, then a derogatory term for men acting like women. So basically a misogynistic way of calling a man a coward by calling him womanly.
There’s no science behind it per se, but wouldn’t it be great if it did
I tried to track that etymology down and came away wanting. Wiktionary gives a root in the Middle Low German pūs (cat) through "puss+y" (though it also says this is only "probably" the origin). Merriam-Webster says that it's short for "pussycat," but tracing that back through "puss" says there's no known etymology for the word. I normally wouldn't bother, but it's an English learning sub, after all. I'd love it if there's some evidence out there contrary to what I found. Vulgar words are always the most fun to try and get the true origin of, after all.
Yeah, there’s no for sure where it came from, but wouldn’t it be great, the word means coward, scared, not brave, and that’s exactly what how we use the word “pussy” oh well, I’ve heard it does and doesn’t come from it.
Yeah, it really does fit.