couard

Couard is a masculine French noun meaning a coward; the feminine form is couarde. In modern usage, it designates a person who lacks courage or who behaves in a way that avoids risk or confrontation, and it carries a pejorative or humorous tone depending on context. The adjective form couard or couarde describes cowardly behavior, as in a couard action or a couarde attitude.

The term is considered somewhat archaic or literary in everyday speech, with more common synonyms such as lâche, poltron, timoré, or peureux. Unlike these alternatives, couard can carry a stronger stigma of cowardice or ridicule and is often employed in fiction, journalism, or rhetorical speech to emphasize a character’s lack of bravery. It is used for both men and women, with feminine agreements as couarde.

The origin of couard is not definitively established. It appears in historical French texts and has persisted in the language as a colorful, sometimes cookbookish label for cowardice. Because of its emphatic tone, it is typically avoided in formal or clinical descriptions of fear and is more frequently found in narrative or satirical contexts.

In usage, couard can describe individuals who avoid danger or duty, as well as actions deemed cowardly. It is generally inappropriate as a neutral or clinical term and should be chosen with awareness of its sharp, evaluative connotation. See also: lâche, courage, courageux.