The adjective coward is applied to someone who lacks the courage to carry out a risky action or to face a situation that represents a complex challenge or that entails some type of danger. Cowardly is also that which is done with cowardice .
For example: “Why do you refuse to talk to me? “You are a coward!” , “I don't dare to tell him everything I feel: I am a coward” , “It was a cowardly and senseless attack” .
The coward has no courage and, therefore, behaves with excessive prudence that is negative. All actions generate fear in him and that often means that he does not even act.
Those who are cowards, in this way, choose not to act to avoid facing the possible consequences of their actions . That is why he adopts a passive position in most areas of his life.
Since we are faced with a subjective qualifying adjective, it is not possible to frame all the situations that make a person a coward; The assessment depends on each person, on the observer, and that is why in all cases the severity of the negligence is not comparable.
For example, we cannot say that the cowardice of someone who does not dare to confess their love to another person is comparable to that of someone who does not help someone who needs it to survive. In fact, depending on the observer, the first can be described as cautious or cautious.
It is important to note that, beyond cultural differences, cowards are usually condemned at a social level throughout the world . Instead, the brave are congratulated and praised.
Suppose a business owner decides to lay off an employee to cut costs. Because he is afraid of the man's reaction, he forces another worker to tell him the news. This attitude means that the businessman can be described as a coward.
Cowardly actions , on the other hand, are those that allow the person responsible not to assume the consequences. If a young person hits another from behind, it is a cowardly attack: the victim had no way to defend himself or react.
Cowardice is not only seen in direct actions, but also in the lack of intervention in an external situation, in the face of something negative that is happening to a third party. For example, if an adult is walking down the street and sees a child in danger, they are expected to act immediately to help them; If fear invades her and drives her to move forward, society will brand her as a coward.
In a context like this, one of the first antonyms of this term that come to mind is "hero." Although this concept is usually associated with epic fiction stories and great battles, or even superheroes, when an individual risks his or her life to save another who is in danger it is usually described in this way.
It is very difficult to avoid any attitude of cowardice throughout life, since the most difficult situations usually make even the bravest people doubt. Not acting at the right time is not always as condemnable as the example of the child in danger; Sometimes it can be about not accepting a work or student challenge , for example, for fear of not measuring up.
Despite cultural issues, which tend to test men's bravery more than women's, this adjective can be applied to both a masculine and a feminine noun, so we can also speak of "a cowardly woman." .