Difference between revisions of "Milquetoast"
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| − | ''' | + | According to the Random House Dictionary, the term '''milquetoast''' refers to "a very timid, unassertive, spineless person, esp. one who is easily dominated or intimidated".<ref> Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc., ''"milquetoast."'', 15 Mar. 2009. [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/milquetoast]</ref> |
| − | The term comes from a character in Harold T. Webster's 1924-1953 ''New York Herald Tribune'' comic strip ''The Timid Soul''. The character's name was Caspar Milquetoast | + | The term comes from a character in Harold T. Webster's 1924-1953 ''New York Herald Tribune'' comic strip ''The Timid Soul''. The character's name was Caspar Milquetoast; Webster described him as “the man who speaks softly and gets hit with a big stick”.<ref>World Wide Words, ''MILQUETOAST'', by Michael Quinion, 1 Jun 2002 [http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-mil1.htm]</ref> The name is a Frenchified reference to the dish "milk toast", toast soaked in milk, which was fed to the sick. <ref>Don Markstein's Toonopedia™, ''THE TIMID SOUL''[http://www.toonopedia.com/milqueto.htm]</ref> The term ''milksop'' (untoasted bread soaked in milk) has been used since the fourteenth century to refer to a weak or ineffectual person.<ref>Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. ''"milksoppy"'' 15 Mar. 2009. [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/milksoppy]</ref>. |
Revision as of 02:48, March 16, 2009
According to the Random House Dictionary, the term milquetoast refers to "a very timid, unassertive, spineless person, esp. one who is easily dominated or intimidated".[1]
The term comes from a character in Harold T. Webster's 1924-1953 New York Herald Tribune comic strip The Timid Soul. The character's name was Caspar Milquetoast; Webster described him as “the man who speaks softly and gets hit with a big stick”.[2] The name is a Frenchified reference to the dish "milk toast", toast soaked in milk, which was fed to the sick. [3] The term milksop (untoasted bread soaked in milk) has been used since the fourteenth century to refer to a weak or ineffectual person.[4].