emboldened

Rarely im·bold·ened

[em-bohl-dnd]

adjective

1. made bold or bolder; given the courage or nerve to do something daring, challenging, or controversial.

   It was unclear whether the missile fire was the work of an emboldened rebel force, the military, or some mixture of both.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of embolden.

Word History and Origins

Origin of emboldened¹

embolden ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

The celebrations came as North Korea's leader has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Russia after sending thousands of North Korean troops to fight alongside Moscow's forces.

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Democrats -- emboldened by polling showing voters mostly blaming the shutdown on Republicans -- are banking on increasing public support in a prolonged standoff.

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Arguably it has emboldened them by enhancing their powers.

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Then the emboldened Israeli leader took a step too far in early September when he authorised an attack on Hamas leaders living in the Gulf state of Qatar.

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In a memo filed Monday, California Deputy Solicitor General Christopher D. Hu warned that the decision had emboldened the administration to deploy troops elsewhere, citing Portland as an example.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• buoyant 
• cheerful 
• comfortable 
• confident 
• eager 
• enthusiastic 
• rosy 
• sanguine 
• trusting 
• upbeat