Meanings
plural weaklings
- A person of weak or even sickly physical constitution.
1 more example
“Mon Dieu!” he soliloquized, “but they are all alike. Cheating, murdering, lying, fighting, and all for things that the beasts of the jungle would not deign to possess—money to purchase the effeminate pleasures of weaklings. And yet withal bound down by silly customs that make them slaves to their unhappy lot while firm in the belief that they be the lords of creation enjoying the only real pleasures of existence.
1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 17 - figurativelyA person of weak character, lacking in courage and/or moral strength.
c.1551, Hugh Latimer, a sermon in Lincolnshire We may not be weaklings because we have a strong enemy.
1 more example
Donald Trump has lashed out against his own supporters, calling them gullible “weaklings” for questioning the transparency of a secretive government inquiry into the late high-profile socialite and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
2025 July 17, Oliver Holmes, “Trump calls Epstein conspiracy a ‘hoax’ and turns on Maga ‘weaklings’”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 14 Aug 2025
- weak, either physically, morally or mentally
Synonyms & antonyms
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Bulgarian слабак, малодушен човек
- слабак (slabak)person of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- малодушен човек (malodušen čovek)person of weak character
- слаб (slab)weak, either physically, morally or mentally
- хилав (hilav)weak, either physically, morally or mentally
Catalan nyicris, nyicris
- nyicrisperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- nyicrisperson of weak character
Chinese Mandarin 懦夫
- 懦夫 (nuòfū)person of weak character
Czech slaboch
- slabochperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
Danish svækling
- svæklingperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
Dutch zwakkeling
- zwakkelingperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
Esperanto malfortulo
- malfortuloperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
Finnish rääpäle, surkimus
- rääpäleperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- surkimusperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- ketaleperson of weak character
- kutaleperson of weak character
- surkimusperson of weak character
French gringalet, poule mouillée
- gringaletperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- poule mouilléeperson of weak character
- chiffe molleperson of weak character
German Schwächling, Schwächling
- Schwächlingperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- Schwächlingperson of weak character
- Feiglingperson of weak character
- Weicheiperson of weak character
Hebrew חֲלַשְׁלוּשׁ
- חֲלַשְׁלוּשׁ (ẖalashlúsh)weak, either physically, morally or mentally
Irish meatachán
- meatachánperson of weak character
Italian femminuccia, coniglio
- femminucciaperson of weak character
- coniglioperson of weak character
- fifoneperson of weak character
- codardoperson of weak character
- vigliaccoperson of weak character
- polloperson of weak character
- merloperson of weak character
- molluscoperson of weak character
- pappamolleperson of weak character
- smidollatoperson of weak character
- rammollitoperson of weak character
Japanese 弱虫
- 弱虫 (yowamushi)person of weak character
Māori tīmohea, rōrā
- tīmoheaperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- rōrāperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- rōrāweak, either physically, morally or mentally
- tīmoheaweak, either physically, morally or mentally
Norwegian Bokmål svekling
- sveklingperson of weak character
Polish słabeusz, słabeusz
- słabeuszperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- słabeuszperson of weak character
- mięczakperson of weak character
Portuguese fracote, fracote
- fracoteperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- fracoteperson of weak character
- fracoteweak, either physically, morally or mentally
Russian слаба́к, слаба́к
- слаба́к (slabák)person of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- слаба́к (slabák)person of weak character
- хлю́пик (xljúpik)person of weak character
- тря́пка (trjápka)person of weak character
- сла́бый (slábyj)weak, either physically, morally or mentally
- хи́лый (xílyj)weak, either physically, morally or mentally
Spanish enclenque, pusilánime
- enclenqueperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- pusilánimeperson of weak character
- enclenqueweak, either physically, morally or mentally
- fuñingueweak, either physically, morally or mentally
- pusilánimeweak, either physically, morally or mentally
Swedish ynkling, vekling
- ynklingperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- veklingperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- sillmjölkeperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- ynklingperson of weak character
- vekweak, either physically, morally or mentally
Welsh swbach, llipryn
- swbachperson of weak or even sickly physical constitution
- lliprynperson of weak character
Cite this entry
weakling. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/weakling
“weakling.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/weakling. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “weakling,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/weakling.
Source: weakling on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.