Squeamish

Squeamish
Squeamish Squeam"ish (skw[=e]m"[i^]sh), a. [OE. squaimous, sweymous, probably from OE. sweem, swem, dizziness, a swimming in the head; cf. Icel. sveimr a bustle, a stir, Norw. sveim a hovering about, a sickness that comes upon one, Icel. svimi a giddiness, AS. sw[=i]ma. The word has been perhaps confused with qualmish. Cf. {Swim} to be dizzy.] Having a stomach that is easily turned or nauseated; hence, nice to excess in taste; fastidious; easily disgusted; apt to be offended at trifling improprieties. [1913 Webster]

Quoth he, that honor's very squeamish That takes a basting for a blemish. --Hudibras. [1913 Webster]

His muse is rustic, and perhaps too plain The men of squeamish taste to entertain. --Southern. [1913 Webster]

So ye grow squeamish, Gods, and sniff at heaven. --M. Arnold. [1913 Webster]

Syn: Fastidious; dainty; overnice; scrupulous. See {Fastidious}. [1913 Webster] -- {Squeam"ish*ly}, adv. -- {Squeam"ish*ness}, n. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • squeamish — index disinclined, reluctant Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • squeamish — mid 15c., variant of squoymous disdainful, fastidious (c.1300), from Anglo Fr. *escoymous, which is of unknown origin. He was somdel squaymous Of fartyng, and of speche daungerous [Chaucer, Miller s Tale, c.1386] …   Etymology dictionary

  • squeamish — ñnicky, ñnicking, finical, particular, fussy, persnickety, pernickety, fastidious, *nice, dainty Analogous words: exacting, demanding, requiring (see DEMAND): hypercritical, *critical, faultfinding, caviling, captious, carping …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • squeamish — [adj] nauseated; finicky annoyed, captious, delicate, disgusted, dizzy, exacting, fastidious, fussy, hypercritical, mincing, particular, prim, prudish, puritanical, qualmish, queasy, queer, scrupulous, shaky, sick, sickly, sick to one’s stomach* …   New thesaurus

  • squeamish — ► ADJECTIVE 1) easily nauseated or disgusted. 2) having fastidious moral views. DERIVATIVES squeamishly adverb squeamishness noun. ORIGIN Old French escoymos …   English terms dictionary

  • squeamish — [skwē′mish] adj. [ME squaymysch, earlier squaimous < Anglo Fr escoimous, orig., disdainful, shy] 1. having a digestive system that is easily upset; easily nauseated; queasy 2. easily shocked or offended; prudish 3. excessively fastidious;… …   English World dictionary

  • squeamish — adjective 1) I m too squeamish to gut fish are you squeamish about a little blood? Syn: easily nauseated, nervous; (squeamish about) put off by, not able to stand the sight of 2) less squeamish nations will sell them arms Syn: scrupulous,… …   Thesaurus of popular words

  • squeamish — squeam|ish [ˈskwi:mıʃ] adj [Date: 1300 1400; : Anglo French; Origin: escoymous] 1.) easily shocked or upset, or easily made to feel sick by seeing unpleasant things 2.) the squeamish [plural] people who are squeamish ▪ His new novel is not for… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • squeamish — [[t]skwi͟ːmɪʃ[/t]] ADJ GRADED: usu v link ADJ If you are squeamish, you are easily upset by unpleasant sights or situations. I m terribly squeamish. I can t bear gory films... I am not squeamish about blood. Derived words: squeamishness N UNCOUNT …   English dictionary

  • squeamish — adj. squeamish about * * * [ skwiːmɪʃ] squeamish about …   Combinatory dictionary

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