pushover

English

Etymology

A deverbal from push over. First use appears c. 1891 in the Galveston Daily News.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpʊʃəʊvə(ɹ)/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

pushover (plural pushovers)

1. Someone who is easily swayed or influenced to change their mind or comply.

   I'm a pushover when it comes to buying new kitchen gadgets.

   • 2024 May 4, Melanie Gerlies, quoting Simon de Pury, “New claimant to €35 mn Klimt emerges”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 18:

     “His [Helmut Newton's] women are strong and powerful, definitely not pushovers,” he says.

2. Someone who is easy to push around and to take advantage of; someone who lets themselves be picked on or bullied without defending or standing up for themselves.
3. Something that is easy to do or accomplish; an easy task.

Synonyms

• (someone who is easily swayed or influenced): little girl, mollusc, nose of wax
• (someone who lets themselves be picked on or bullied): nestle-cock, softy, wuss; see also Thesaurus:milksop

Derived terms

• pushoverness

Translations

Someone who is easily swayed or influenced to change their mind or comply — see also influenceable

• Bulgarian: балама (bg) m (balama)
• Czech: slaboch m
• Esperanto: cedemulo
• Galician: pusilánime (gl), apoucado m, apoucada f, minguado m, minguada f, coitado (gl) m, coitada f, influenciábel (gl)
• German: Schwächling (de) m, Umfaller m
• Hungarian: palimadár (hu), balek (hu), könnyen befolyásolható ember
• Polish: naiwniak (pl) m, naiwniaczka (pl) f, frajer (pl) m, frajerka (pl) f
• Portuguese: influenciável (pt)
• Russian: проста́к (ru) m (prosták), простофи́ля (ru) m or f (prostofílja)
• Spanish: títere (es) m, marioneta (es) f, monigote (es) m, pelele (es) m, muñeco (es) m, pusilánime (es) m or f

Someone who lets themselves be picked on or bullied

• Galician: pusilánime (gl), papamoscas (gl), paiolo (gl), pailán
• German: Weichei (de) n
• Hebrew: פראייר (he) m (fráyer)
• Hungarian: balek (hu), mamlasz (hu)
• Italian: merlo (it), pollo (it), smidollato (it), pappa molle, pappamolle, rammollito (it), fifone (it), codardo (it), cortigiano (it), mollusco (it), vigliacco (it), pusillanime (it), eunuco (it), debole (it) m, mammoletta, coniglio (it)
• Korean: 호구 (ko) (hogu)
• Polish: popychadło (pl) n
• Portuguese: bobo (pt) m, coitado (pt) m, covarde (pt), fraco (pt) m, frouxo (pt) m, molenga (pt), pusilânime (pt)
• Russian: слаба́к (ru) m (slabák)
• Turkish: ezik (tr), pısırık (tr)

See also

• cave
• cave in
• give in
• pullover
• turn the other cheek
• Appendix:Words from Variety

Anagrams

• overpush