Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Pale in color; washed-out.
- adjective Watery; diluted.
- adjective Lacking strength or resolution.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Watery; damp; moist; soft: as, “the washy ooze,”
- Too much diluted; weak; thin: as, washy tea.
- Hence Wanting in solidity, substantial ness, strength, stamina, or the like; feeble; worthless.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Watery; damp; soft.
- adjective Lacking substance or strength; weak; thin; dilute; feeble.
- adjective Local, U. S. Not firm or hardy; liable to sweat profusely with labor.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Watery;
damp ;soft . - adjective Lacking substance or strength; weak; thin;
dilute ;feeble . - adjective US, dialect, archaic Not firm or hardy; liable to sweat profusely with labour.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective having lost freshness or brilliance of color
- adjective overly diluted; thin and insipid
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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What's really wishy-washy is you, conservative wife-cheating senator, who enjoys the company and services of prostitues, but comes out in public agaist their services.
Vitter defends Southern influence in GOP, slams Voinovich 2009
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Now he's back to where he started, and they're hoping that this is going -- at least consistency is going to play better for him than being a little bit perhaps wishy-washy, which is how he looked in last week's debate.
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Traveller, a light chesnut, what the hunter would call a washy brute, always eating and never fat; -- the Colt, so called from his being young, certainly unequal to such a journey as that on which he was taken; -- and
Expedition into Central Australia Charles Sturt 1832
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Many horses, particularly slack loined, slight, "washy" animals, purge if worked or excited, as may be observed among race horses when taken to a race course.
The Veterinarian Charles James Korinek
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"washy" by horsemen; they are those with long bodies, long legs, and narrow, flat sides.
Special Report on Diseases of the Horse Charles B. Michener 1877
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Because Baker, his allies, and occasionally wishy-washy journalists can no longer run on the facts to criticize Gov.
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(It just doesn't seem like one of those wishy-washy things you can flip-flop on.)
Getting more 'gay-supportive' with time Aaron Morrissey 2010
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Perry said she truly believes Bybees statement that he stands by the memo, adding, He's not a flip-flopping, wishy-washy type of person.
Discourse.net: At the Sharp End: The Highest Officials Authorize Torture of a Clerk 2009
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Why am I being so wishy-washy when the operational models last night in such good agreement about a changeover with the the storm?
Potential storm Tues-Wed: more snow or rain? Wes Junker 2011
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But on my first draft, my protag was kind of wishy-washy, and that is not how I want her to be.
Creative Every Day, Part 15: We’re Cookin’ Now « Looking for Roots 2010
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