Crossword clues for poltroon
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Poltroon \Pol*troon"\, n. [F. poltron, from It. poltrone an idle
fellow, sluggard, coward, poltro idle, lazy, also, bed, fr.
OHG. polstar, bolstar, cushion, G. polster, akin to E.
bolster. See Bolster.]
An arrant coward; a dastard; a craven; a mean-spirited
wretch.
--Shak.
Poltroon \Pol*troon"\, a. Base; vile; contemptible; cowardly.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
"A coward; a nidgit; a scoundrel" [Johnson, who spells it poltron], 1520s, from Middle French poultron "rascal, coward" (16c., Modern French poltron), from Italian poltrone "lazy fellow, coward," apparently from *poltro "couch, bed" (compare Milanese polter, Venetian poltrona "couch"), perhaps from a Germanic source (compare Old High German polstar "pillow;" see bolster (n.)). Also see -oon.
Wiktionary
a. cowardly. n. An ignoble or total coward; a dastard; a mean-spirited wretch.
WordNet
adj. characterized by complete cowardliness
Wikipedia
Poltroon was a successful event horse ridden by American rider Torrance Watkins.
Susie Beckman, of Cincinnati, Ohio, bred her pinto pony mare, Frosty, to the Thoroughbred stallion Hopper's Pride.
Despite her size, Poltroon was awarded the individual bronze medal at the 1980 alternate Olympic Games at Fontainebleau, France, finishing with a score of 75.00 penalty points. This made her rider the first woman to win an Olympic medal in the sport. Additionally, the mare won the 1980 Modified Advanced 3-Day at the Rolex Kentucky Three Day, and finished second at the Badminton Horse Trials.
Category:Eventing horses Category:Individual mares
Usage examples of "poltroon".
One fellow, Lord Bennington, had the cheek to call me a whey-faced poltroon.
The preacher felt a duty being laid upon him, the duty to awaken the North to the poltroons who were leading its sons into one defeat after another.
And the poltroon compelled the brave woman to witness the execution, with the added indignity of a rope round her neck,--or as De Charlevoix much more neatly expresses it, "obligea sa prisonniere d'assister a l'execution, la corde au cou.
And no sooner had Gerard left Fleurette than he began to curse himself for a poltroon because he had not refused to part from her side.
His views on Gallipoli I regard as slightly unsound, since he makes me out at once a Cyrano, a jackass, and a poltroon.
Ackabar Anders, the starlight meanderer, profligate poltroon, feckless philanderer.