gutlessness

Thân thiện

A manager shows gutlessness by avoiding a difficult conversation.

Definition

Noun: * The trait of lacking courage and determination; fearful of loss or injury: "Gutlessness" refers to a personal quality characterized by a lack of bravery, resolve, or willingness to face difficulty, danger, or pain. It implies being easily frightened or deterred by the potential for negative consequences.

Usage

"Gutlessness" is a formal and critical noun used to describe a person's enduring character flaw, not a temporary state of fear. It is often used in contexts of moral failure, leadership, or confrontation. * It is typically used in the singular form. * It can be modified by adjectives (e.g., sheer gutlessness, political gutlessness). * Common collocations include verbs like show, demonstrate, accuse of, and criticize for.

Examples

• The general criticized the gutlessness of the officers who failed to act.
• His decision was not based on strategy but on pure gutlessness.
• The team's defeat was blamed on a collective gutlessness in the final minutes.
• She accused the committee of gutlessness for failing to make the tough choice.

Advanced Usage

• "Moral gutlessness": A specific lack of courage to do what is ethically right, especially when it is unpopular or risky.
  • The scandal revealed a culture of moral gutlessness within the organization.

Variants and Related Words

• Gutless (adjective): Having the trait of gutlessness; lacking courage.
  • He was a gutless leader who avoided all conflict.
• Guts (noun, informal): Courage and determination. (This is the opposite concept from which "gutlessness" is derived).
  • It takes real guts to stand up for your beliefs.

Synonyms

• Cowardice
• Timidity
• Spinelessness
• Faintheartedness
• Pusillanimity (formal)

Antonyms

• Courage
• Bravery
• Fortitude
• Resoluteness
• Guts (informal)

Học thuật

Noun

1. the trait of lacking courage and determination; fearful of loss or injury