milquetoast

英 ['mɪlktəʊst] 美 ['mɪlk,tost]

milquetoast (n.): "timid, meek person," 1938, from Caspar Milquetoast, character created by U.S. newspaper cartoonist H.T. Webster (1885-1952) in the strip "The Timid Soul," which ran from 1924 in the "New York World" and later the "Herald Tribune." By 1930 the name was being referenced as a type of the meek man. The form seems to be milktoast with an added French twist; also see milksop.

1. Foreign policy planners fear the U.S. A gets a Milquetoast reputation abroad.: 制定对外政策的人害怕美国会在国外落得个胆小怕事的罪名.