boldface

[ bohld-feys ]

/ ˈboʊldˌfeɪs /

Printing.

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: boldface / boldfaced on Thesaurus.com

noun

type or print that has thick, heavy lines, used for emphasis, headings, etc.

adjective

typeset or printed in boldface.

verb (used with object), bold·faced, bold·fac·ing.

to mark (copy) to be set in boldface.

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is used to state an obligation or duty someone has?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Compare lightface.

Origin of boldface

First recorded in 1685–95; bold + face

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH boldface

barefaced, boldface , bold-faced

Words nearby boldface

bolar, bolas, bold, bold as brass, Bolden, boldface, bold-faced, boldhearted, boldly, boldness, boldo

How to use boldface in a sentence

Sherman and Palmer had co-written Politico’s Playbook newsletter since 2016, when they inherited it from Allen, who had made it famous with a relentless focus on insider-y political details, coupled with boldface birthday-party sightings around town.
Politico sold to German publisher Axel Springer|Jeremy Barr|August 26, 2021|Washington Post
It became a large-scale business, attracting boldface-name investors including Ted Leonsis and Steve Case.
Custom T-shirt maker saves its business with early pivot to masks|Thomas Heath|March 4, 2021|Washington Post
Big Pump Signal, a shadowy group of cryptocurrency pump-and-dump merchants, makes up for its lack of boldface names with its sheer mass of participants.
The meme economy is making skilled people rich|Felix Salmon|February 9, 2021|Axios
Sandground’s other boldface-name clients included John Heckler, whose messy divorce in the mid-1980s from Margaret Heckler, then-secretary of health and human services, generated headlines.
Mark B. Sandground Sr., Machiavellian divorce lawyer, dies at 88|Bart Barnes|January 11, 2021|Washington Post

Note: Unusual words that are playable in Scrabble appear in this article in boldface.
Well, La Ti Da: Stephin Merritt’s Winning Little Words of Scrabble|David Bukszpan|October 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The boldface names at the event were all Democrats: Barack Obama and former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter spoke.
No Republicans at March on Washington Anniversary|Ben Jacobs|August 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Let me put this in boldface: Heritage's cost estimates are driven not primarily by welfare, but by healthcare.
You Can't Wish Away the Facts About Immigration Amnesty|David Frum|May 9, 2013|DAILY BEAST
With each new boldface name she charmed, the plump girl from Iowa gleefully wrangled her way closer to the front of the line.
Elsa Maxwell, the Kingmaker|Mark Braude|November 1, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The boldface fashion houses have not had an easy time during Paris fashion shows.
Paris’s Fashion Finale|Robin Givhan|October 6, 2011|DAILY BEAST
In the Lambeth MS, passages printed in clarendon are shown here in dark-red boldface.
Selections from early Middle English, 1130-1250|Various
The bottom of the panel gave the Road Commissioner's name in boldface with Houghton's name below in slightly smaller print.
Highways in Hiding|George Oliver Smith
Some in-line paragraph headings are in boldface and some are in italics; this emphasis has been retained.
Evolution|Joseph Le Conte
Abbreviated titles of the most frequently cited works are given here in boldface.
Alida|Amelia Stratton Comfield
Words shown in boldface were originally printed in blackletter (gothic) type.
Roister Doister|Nicholas Udall

British Dictionary definitions for boldface

bold face

noun

printing a weight of type characterized by thick heavy lines, as the entry words in this dictionaryCompare light face

adjective boldface

(of type) having this weight

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