audacious

American  

[aw-dey-shuhs] / ɔˈdeɪ ʃəs /

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.

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audacious British  

/ ɔːˈdeɪʃəs, ɔːˈdæsɪtɪ /

adjective

1. recklessly bold or daring; fearless

2. impudent or presumptuous

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Etymology

Origin of audacious

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

Explanation

This adjective is very bold — if you are audacious, you are daring and unconventional! The adjective audacious comes from the Latin word audacia and means "daring, boldness, courage," and often gets applied in situations where someone does something pretty unusual, like becoming an astronaut and going to the moon. It can also mean challenging conventions and doing things that most people don't do, such as when Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in the United States to become a doctor. Blackwell then inspired Elizabeth Garrett Anderson to become the first female doctor in England. And the rest is history!

Related Words

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