doughty
adjective
steadfastly courageous and resolute; valiant.
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Tough+Guy.
doughty
1 American
[dou-tee]
/ ˈdaʊ ti /
adjective
doughtier,
doughtiest
Doughty
2
American
[dou-tee]
/ ˈdaʊ ti /
noun
Doughty
1
British
/ ˈdaʊtɪ /
noun
doughty
2
British
/ ˈdaʊtɪ /
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of doughty
before 1000; Middle English; Old English dohtig worthy, equivalent to *doht worth (cognate with Old High German toht; see dow, -th 1) + -ig -y 1; replacing Old English dyhtig, cognate with German tüchtig
Explanation
Someone who's doughty is brave and determined, like a doughty knight who fearlessly rides off to slay a terrifying giant. At first glance, you might confuse doughty with doughy, but the two words are quite different in meaning. Doughy things are soft and squishy, like unbaked bread. A doughty person is valiant and steadfast — like a doughty explorer who braves wild jungles and piranha-infested rivers in order to find the ruins of an ancient city. The word is derived from a root that means "strong."
Vocabulary lists containing doughty
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.
See Examples For:
Young readers will cheer for the doughty girl, who braves the razored depths to haul the baby dragon to safety in this satisfying, sumptuously illustrated fable translated from the French by Alyson Waters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2025
His doughty performance, punctuated by that final dash to victory, spoke the loudest.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 29, 2023
It is that doughty and camp venue that POP sometimes uses for endearingly low-budget and often farcical opera productions, but with high musical standards.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2023
They also had a doughty opponent that grew in confidence.
From BBC ● Dec. 21, 2022
Though slow to quarrel, and for sport killing nothing that lived, they were doughty at bay, and at need could still handle arms.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
“We’re sitting here in the unknown ... I just want to go home. I miss my bed,” said Doughty, who was staying at a Red Cross shelter in Anaheim.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2026
Doughty added that the band adjusts its set to match the diverse audience the festival attracts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026
When the warden approached, Doughty told her he was waiting for his partner, but then became agitated getting out of his car and walking towards the warden.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2026
In mitigation, defence solicitor Robert Hanratty said Doughty, who appeared in court in a wheelchair, accepted responsibility for his behaviour.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2026
Pekka Rollins tucked a wad of jurda into his cheek and leaned back in his chair to survey the raggedy crew Doughty had brought to his office.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
But then that doughtier, more familiar English trait—worldly scepticism—must and will reassert itself.
From Economist ● Jun. 24, 2016
Rugby union has known few doughtier competitors than the All Black captain and, should he become the first person to guide his side to two consecutive World Cup triumphs, it will merely underline that fact.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 29, 2015
The 24-year-old was outstanding in dry, firm conditions against Scotland at the start of the Six Nations but England preferred the doughtier Brad Barritt at inside centre in the latter half of the campaign.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 29, 2013
But I'm afraid the task would take a doughtier woodswoman than me.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 19, 2012
But they always parted with an increased regard for one another, and each desired no doughtier comrade when it was necessary to voyage for a little past the emotions.
From Howards End by Forster, E. M. (Edward Morgan)
“Turn Around Time” offers no pat answers, and occasionally wanders into thickets of philosophical conjecture and opaque references that may stymie all but the doughtiest of readers.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 11, 2019
Only Munster, who face Biarritz today, now stand in the way of an all-French finale in Paris but even the doughtiest Celtic warrior can sense trouble brewing.
From The Guardian ● May 1, 2010
In a tight spot, he could pick up a broadsword and lead a charge with the doughtiest of his centurions.
From Time Magazine Archive
In his hard-hitting campaign to unseat Illinois' three-term Democratic Senator Paul Douglas, 74, comely, honey-haired Valerie Percy, 21, a June graduate of Cornell, proved one of Chuck Percy's doughtiest aides.
From Time Magazine Archive
Not the doughtiest soldier of old Gondor, nor the most savage Orc entrapped, had ever thus endured her, or set blade to her beloved flesh.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
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.
