as in cowardly
having or showing a shameful lack of courage
his dastardly conduct in a critical moment haunted him for the rest of his life
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Recent Examples of dastardly
Of all the films vying for honors in this year’s awards season, only one heralds the return of not just one of cinema’s most iconic duos, but one of its most dastardly villains.
—
Alex Ritman, Variety, 9 Jan. 2025
For starters, Rate-A-Queen is back — no surprise after the success of the dastardly Plane Jane versus the hero Nymphia Wind.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
There is a chance too that an outsider broke into the internals of AI and made dastardly changes.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
LifeLock’s Home Title Monitoring warns of several variations of that dastardly attack.
—PCMAG, 27 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for dastardly
Alex Ritman, Variety, 9 Jan. 2025
For starters, Rate-A-Queen is back — no surprise after the success of the dastardly Plane Jane versus the hero Nymphia Wind.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
There is a chance too that an outsider broke into the internals of AI and made dastardly changes.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
LifeLock’s Home Title Monitoring warns of several variations of that dastardly attack.
—PCMAG, 27 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for dastardly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dastardly
Adjective
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Two beloved members of the Tijuana journalism community were killed in two separate cowardly attacks.—
Tania Navarro,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 Mar. 2025
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Playing Switzerland is a dangerous game for a Housewife — never choosing a side is seen as a cowardly position that quickly wears thin.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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In that moment, McConaughey exemplified a leader who isn’t afraid to embrace vulnerability—a trait that can foster trust and authenticity in any leadership role.—
Vibhas Ratanjee,
Forbes,
1 Mar. 2025
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Don’t be afraid to geek out: The happiest people don’t play it cool.—
Jessica Weiss, Contributor,
CNBC,
1 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Fresh off a terrifying election cycle that feels like a fever dream (or the most craven Ryan Murphy series), America in 2025 is downright disorienting.—
Christopher Rosa,
Glamour,
14 Feb. 2025
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Trump has already turned a national tragedy into a craven, baseless political attack by blaming DEI programs at the FAA and past administrations.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
31 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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And people who are scared are less likely to want to stay here.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Mar. 2025
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For people fresh out of school, my advice as a lawyer is, don’t be scared to seek counsel but above all, don’t be scared to ask for things.—
Joelle Diderich,
WWD,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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And this week, there’s a very nice sequence in which Matty walks a frightened Zoey, step-by-step, through what to expect when she gets arrested.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2025
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Igor tries to subdue Ani, who's frightened and enraged, kicking and screaming at the prospect of being separated from her new husband.—
Mandalit del Barco,
NPR,
26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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There was no fanfare — indeed no announcement or change in Oscar rules — but a firestorm of controversy resulted, followed by the Academy’s cowardly, pusillanimous silence on the issue.—
Armond White,
National Review,
5 Mar. 2025
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Mark Kelly Americans who are rightfully appalled by the pusillanimous response to anti-Semitism on college campuses have been pulling their donations and calling for restrictions on anti-Israel student groups.—
Arthur Levitt,
WSJ,
12 Nov. 2023
Adjective
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The look features bright coral eyeshadow covering the eyelid, a fuchsia shade in the crease, and a swipe of fluorescent yellow eyeliner on the outside half of the eye and right under the brow.—
Andrea Park,
Teen Vogue,
20 July 2017
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In addition to selling yellow mustard and hot sauce, the division makes ketchup, onion flavorings and other products.—
Nick Turner,
Bloomberg.com,
19 July 2017
Adjective
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That larger significance is remarkably unheroic and fatalistic.—
Gabriel Winslow-Yost,
Harper's Magazine,
23 Sep. 2024
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In the world of The Boys, based on the gleefully scabrous 2000s indie comic-book series of the same name by writer Garth Ennis and artist Darick Robertson, superheroes are real, pop-culture-dominating, and with rare exceptions, entirely unheroic.—
Brian Hiatt,
Rolling Stone,
13 June 2024
Cite this Entry
“Dastardly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dastardly. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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