nebbish

Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of nebbish At the film’s Cipriani afterparty, the New York Times’ Kyle Buchanan compared the Babygirl effect to what Challengers did for Josh O’Connor, who’d previously played nice guys and nebbishes. Nate Jones, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2024 Is the algorithm going to make the out-of-shape nebbish standup an endangered species? Jason Zinoman, New York Times, 15 Nov. 2023 The nebbish who fights back. Jay Deitcher, Wired, 5 July 2021 Dennehy’s size and potent masculinity was integral to Falls' noir-tinged staging of the play; at the time, there was an unspoken contrast with Dustin Hoffman, who had recently interpreted Willy on both stage and screen as a nebbish who seemed to shrink ever-further before your eyes. Chris Jones, chicagotribune.com, 22 Oct. 2020 The assassins pursuing him there include a bounty hunter called Mr. Nobody (Shamier Anderson), who shows up with his beloved dog (a cheeky reference back to the premise of the first John Wick movie), and a nasty nebbish called Chidi (Marko Zaror). Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2023 Played by Allen, Leonard Zelig is a nebbish of genius. Mark Feeney, BostonGlobe.com, 5 Jan. 2023 Playing a harried but devoted father is a new look for the actor who is frequently typecast as an unlikeable nebbish. Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 17 Nov. 2022 Sievert plays Seymour, the lovestruck florist-shop nebbish who unexpectedly becomes the caretaker of a carnivorous and increasingly hungry hunk of vegetation. Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 15 Nov. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nebbish
Noun
  • Ian McEwan explored this gray territory in his novel Machines Like Me, where his milquetoast protagonist smilingly tolerates his robot's romantic overtures toward his love interest—until the threat of displacement becomes all too real.
    Silvia Park, TIME, 10 Mar. 2025
  • The genesis of the legislation was a scandal: A newspaper published U.S. Supreme Court Justice nominee Robert Bork’s milquetoast video rental history during his confirmation hearings.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Noun
  • This is a cop novel that fully satisfies its genre expectations — chases, gun battles, sinister bad guys, questionable cops, cowards and heroes.
    Claude Peck, Boston Herald, 16 Mar. 2025
  • If Republicans refuse to do that, then their constituents can rest assured that their representatives are cowards and liars.
    Letters to the Editor, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Of the two sisters in the yellow house, Paula is a much gentler girl, a wuss, a baby, the biggest chicken—that’s how her sister thinks of her—and Rhonda is the boss.
    Alex Mar, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2023
  • Teach, who carries a gun, is a wuss about the rain.
    New York Times, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2022
Noun
  • Residents have complained about poor living conditions, including issues with cockroaches, mice and other pests and the lack of air conditioning, heat and hot water.
    Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Mads Mikkelsen is perfect in the title role, a forensic psychiatrist who basically plays with FBI investigator Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) like a cat would a mouse.
    Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Nebbish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nebbish. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

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