mealy-mouthed

meal·y-mouthed

M m

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [mee-lee mouth d, moutht]
- /ˈmi li maʊðd, maʊθt/
- /ˈmiː.li maʊθ/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [mee-lee mouth d, moutht]
- /ˈmi li maʊðd, maʊθt/

Definitions of mealy-mouthed word

adjective mealy-mouthed avoiding the use of direct and plain language, as from timidity, excessive delicacy, or hypocrisy; inclined to mince words; insincere, devious, or compromising. 1
adjective mealy-mouthed avoiding plain language 1
adjective mealy-mouthed If you say that someone is being mealy-mouthed, you are critical of them for being unwilling to speak in a simple or open way because they want to avoid talking directly about something unpleasant. 0
adjective mealy-mouthed hesitant or afraid to speak plainly; not outspoken 0
adjective mealy-mouthed not outspoken or blunt; not willing to state the facts in simple, direct words; euphemistic and insincere 0

See all 5 definitions of mealy-mouthed

Information block about the term

Origin of mealy-mouthed

First appearance:

before 1565

One of the 32% oldest English words

First recorded in 1565-75

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Mealy-mouthed

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Mealy-mouthed

mealy-mouthed popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 34% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.

According to our data about 57% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

Synonyms for mealy-mouthed

adj mealy-mouthed

affected — If you describe someone's behaviour as affected, you disapprove of the fact that they behave in an unnatural way that is intended to impress other people.
deceptive — If something is deceptive, it encourages you to believe something which is not true.
devious — If you describe someone as devious you do not like them because you think they are dishonest and like to keep things secret, often in a complicated way.
disingenuous — lacking in frankness, candor, or sincerity; falsely or hypocritically ingenuous; insincere: Her excuse was rather disingenuous.
hypocritical — of the nature of hypocrisy, or pretense of having virtues, beliefs, principles, etc., that one does not actually possess: The parent who has a “do what I say and not what I do” attitude can appear hypocritical to a child.

All 6 Synonyms of mealy-mouthed

Matching words

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