Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Coward

Coward (kou"?rd) , adjective

[Old French couard, coard, coart, n. and adj., French couard, from Old French coe, coue, tail, French queue (from Latin coda, a form of cauda tail) + -ard; orig., short-tailed, as an epithet of the hare, or perh., turning tail, like a scared dog. Compare Cue, Queue, Caudal.]

1.
(Heraldry) Borne in the escutcheon with his tail doubled between his legs; -- said of a lion.
2.
Destitute of courage; timid; cowardly.
Fie, coward woman, and soft-hearted wretch. — Shakespeare
3.
Belonging to a coward; proceeding from, or expressive of, base fear or timidity.
He raised the house with loud and coward cries. — Shakespeare
Invading fears repel my coward joy. — Proir

Coward , noun

A person who lacks courage; a timid or pusillanimous person; a poltroon.
A fool is nauseous, but a coward worse. — Dryden

Coward , transitive verb

To make timorous; to frighten. [Obsolete]
That which cowardeth a man's heart. — Foxe