milquetoast

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milquetoast^¹

/ˈmɪlk.təʊ̯st/
/ˈmɪlk.təʊ̯st/ UK
/ˈmɪlk.toʊ̯st/ Canada, US
/ˈmɪlk.təʉ̯st/ Australia
/ˈməlk.tɐʉ̯st/ New Zealand
/ˈmɪlk.tost/ Scotland
/ˈmɪlk.ʈoːst/ India
/ˈmɪlk.ʈɔ(ː)wst/ India
/ˈmɪlk.ʈoː(w)st/ India

Sounds like milk toast · Rhymes with -ɪlktəʊst

Where it comes from

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”), from milque (pseudo-Gallicism derived from English milk) + toast.

adjective more milquetoast · most milquetoast · milktoast · Milquetoast

derogatory, informal 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.
Similar: feeble, ineffectual, insipid

noun milquetoasts · milktoast · Milquetoast

derogatory, informal A person of meek or timid disposition; a person who lacks character or effectiveness. We know that theology must be common to all believers, but again we also know that some enjoy only milquetoast (german milchspeise), while others can eat solid food, and that one and the same truth is apprehended in different ways, for it is not possible to accommodate all these ways to the grasp of
Similar: softy, wimp, wuss, big girl's blouse, candy-arse, candy-ass, crybaby, milksop, milquetoast, namby, namby-pamby, nestle-cock

Milquetoast^²

adjective more Milquetoast · most Milquetoast

Alternative letter-case form of milquetoast If Bach had any guts, he wouldn't take that. He's too much of a Milquetoast guy.

noun Milquetoasts

Alternative letter-case form of milquetoast The Milquetoasts of this world seldom wake up in time to get tough effectively, Mr. [Harold Tucker] Webster fears. [...] Webster considers him a worthy citizen—of the kind that had better begin to show a little more spunk before it is too late.

Translations

Every language

noun person of meek or timid disposition; person who lacks character or effectiveness

Español	tímido retraído
Português	banana, molenga
Deutsch	Angsthase, Hasenfuß
Italiano	pavido, remissivo, timido

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MLA

"milquetoast." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/milquetoast. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

milquetoast. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/milquetoast

Chicago

"milquetoast." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/milquetoast.

BibTeX

@misc{milquetoast_2026,
  title = {milquetoast},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/milquetoast},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}