audacious

[aw-dey-shuhs]

adjective

1. extremely bold or daring; recklessly brave; fearless.

   an audacious explorer.

   Synonyms: venturesome, dauntless, intrepid, courageous
   Antonyms: cowardly

2. extremely original; without restriction to prior ideas; highly inventive.

   an audacious vision of the city's bright future.

3. recklessly bold in defiance of convention, propriety, law, or the like; insolent; brazen.

   Synonyms: forward, impertinent, shameless, unabashed

4. lively; unrestrained; uninhibited.

   an audacious interpretation of her role.

audacious

/ ɔːˈdeɪʃəs, ɔːˈdæsɪtɪ /

adjective

1. recklessly bold or daring; fearless

2. impudent or presumptuous

Other Word Forms

• audaciously adverb
• audaciousness noun
• unaudacious adjective
• unaudaciously adverb
• unaudaciousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of audacious¹

First recorded in 1540–50; audaci(ty) + -ous

Word History and Origins

Origin of audacious¹

C16: from Latin audāx bold, from audēre to dare

Example Sentences

Prestige TV has produced its share of narratively-driven psychological experimentation, most of it unintentional, but little of it as audacious as “Pluribus.”

Read more on Salon

“It was pretty audacious of us to talk about going to the Super Bowl, winning it, you know?”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The audacious heist made headlines worldwide and sparked a debate over security at the world's most-visited museum.

Read more on Barron's

When Lincoln Riley first landed in Los Angeles, his audacious plan to remake a lacking USC roster on the fly revolved almost entirely around the transfer portal.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

This was after Ben Gannon-Doak had chopped inside and floated in an inviting ball, but only a Ballon d'Or nominee might have the confidence to attempt something so audacious.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• adventurous 
• bold 
• courageous 
• foolhardy 
• resolute 
• risky