Dictionary.com
definitions

bold

[bohld]
|||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bold ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, bold·er, bold·est.

RELATED CONTENT

If your last name ends in “-ez,” what does it mean? And what last name means “bold voyager?”Read more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.
READ MORE
anecdataFind new words to share every day with Dictionary.com's Word of the Day. Discover the definition, pronunciation, and origin of uncommon words plus more!
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

daring, resolute, audacious, courageous, fearless, adventurous, heroic, brash, confident, smart, gutsy, vivid, colorful, forceful, definite, eye-catching, spirited, flashy, strong, loud

Nearby words

  1. bolan pass,
  2. boland,
  3. bolar,
  4. bolas,
  5. bolases,
  6. bold as brass,
  7. bold face,
  8. bold-face,
  9. bold-faced,
  10. bolden

Idioms

    be/make (so) bold, to presume or venture; dare: I made bold to offer my suggestion.

Origin of bold

before 1000; Middle English bald, bold, Old English b(e)ald; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German bald, Dutch boud bold, Old Norse ballr dire < Germanic *bál-tha-z; akin to Welsh balch proud, Irish balc strong < *bal-ko-
ANTONYMS FOR bold
2. modest.
SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR bold ON THESAURUS.COM
Related forms
Can be confusedbolder boulder

Synonym study

2. Bold, brazen, forward, presumptuous may refer to manners in a derogatory way. Bold suggests impudence, shamelessness, and immodesty: a bold stare. Brazen suggests the same, together with a defiant manner: a brazen liar. Forward implies making oneself unduly prominent or bringing oneself to notice with too much assurance. Presumptuous implies overconfidence, effrontery, taking too much for granted
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bold

British Dictionary definitions for bold

bold

adjective

courageous, confident, and fearless; ready to take risks
showing or requiring couragea bold plan
immodest or impudentshe gave him a bold look
standing out distinctly; conspicuousa figure carved in bold relief
very steepthe bold face of the cliff
imaginative in thought or expressionthe novel's bold plot
printing set in bold face

noun

printing short for bold face
Derived Formsboldly, adverbboldness, noun

Word Origin for bold

Old English beald; related to Old Norse ballr dangerous, terrible, baldinn defiant, Old High German bald bold
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for bold

bold

adj.

Old English beald (West Saxon), bald (Anglian) "bold, brave, confident, strong," from Proto-Germanic *balthaz (cf. Old High German bald "bold, swift," in names such as Archibald, Leopold, Theobald; Gothic balþei "boldness;" Old Norse ballr "frightful, dangerous"), perhaps from PIE *bhol-to- suffixed form of *bhel- (2) "to blow, swell" (see bole).

Of flavors (coffee, etc.) from 1829. The noun meaning "those who are bold" is from c.1300. Old French and Provençal baut "bold," Italian baldo "bold, daring, fearless" are Germanic loan-words.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with bold

bold

In addition to the idiom beginning with bold

  • bold as brass

also see:

  • big and bold
  • make bold
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.