swashbuckling
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
-
of or characteristic of a swashbuckler
-
(esp of films in period costume) full of adventure and excitement
Etymology
Origin of swashbuckling
First recorded in 1685–95; swashbuckl(er) + -ing 2, -ing 1
Explanation
Going on bold, exciting, and exotic adventures is swashbuckling. The stories of the heroic outlaw Robin Hood involve a lot of swashbuckling. You can use swashbuckling as a noun or an adjective, so you might dress up as the swashbuckling Inigo Montoya from the movie The Princess Bride, or try to convince your friends to watch a movie full of adventure and swashbuckling. Swashbuckler came first, a 16th-century name for a swaggering fighter. Earlier, such a character was simply called a swash, which also meant "fall of a blow."
Vocabulary lists containing swashbuckling
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Vice President JD Vance told the mourners Graham was an affable, gregarious politician who would slap Senate colleagues on the back and had a passion for engaging opponents in "swashbuckling" debate.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
“He’d come to 101 Park Avenue, where I was a lawyer. He had this swashbuckling style,” Witkoff told a surprised Tucker Carlson on an early-2025 appearance on Carlson’s podcast.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
In a blink of an eye those childhood heroes became a cut-to in the crowd - Ronaldo, the original, with Roberto Carlos and Kaka - greying legends in suits instead of swashbuckling boots.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026
The swashbuckling 17-minute short is a pitch-perfect elaboration on newspaper cartoonist E.C.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 27, 2026
Stalin got his emotional support from his colleague and best friend, Sergey Kirov, the swashbuckling head of the Communist Party in Leningrad.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
