daresay
or dare say
[dair-sey]
- to venture to say (something); assume (something) as probable (used only in present sing. 1st person): I daresay we will soon finish.
Show More
Origin of daresay
1250–1300; Middle English dar sayen I dare to say
dare
[dair]
- to have the necessary courage or boldness for something; be bold enough: You wouldn't dare!
Show More
- to have the boldness to try; venture; hazard.
- to meet defiantly; face courageously.
- to challenge or provoke (a person) into a demonstration of courage; defy: to dare a man to fight.
Show More
- to have the necessary courage or boldness to (used chiefly in questions and negatives): How dare you speak to me like that? He dare not mention the subject again.
Show More
- an act of daring or defiance; challenge.
Show More
- dare say, daresay.
Show More
Origin of dare
before 900; Middle English dar (v.), Old English dear(r), 1st and 3rd person singular present indicative of durran; akin to Old High German gitarran
Synonyms for dare
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comSynonym study
1. Dare, venture imply involvement in risks and dangers. Dare emphasizes the state of mind that makes one willing to meet danger: He dared to do what he knew was right. Venture emphasizes the act of doing something that involves risk: He ventured into deep water.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for dare say
pretend, deem, understand, expect, presume, think, operate, dare, speculate, divine, calculate, predict, suggest, fathom, suppose, solve, believe, infer, surmise, figuredare
- (tr) to challenge (a person to do something) as proof of courage
- (can take an infinitive with or without to) to be courageous enough to try (to do something)she dares to dress differently from the others; you wouldn't dare!
- (tr) rare to oppose without fear; defy
- I dare say or I daresay
- (it is) quite possible (that)
- probably: used as sentence substitute
Show More
- a challenge to do something as proof of courage
- something done in response to such a challenge
Show More
Word Origin for dare
Old English durran; related to Old High German turran to venture
usage
When used negatively or interrogatively, dare does not usually add -s: he dare not come; dare she come? When used negatively in the past tense, however, dare usually adds -d: he dared not come
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 dare say
dare
1590s, from dare (v.).
Show More
dare
from first and third person singular of Old English durran "to brave danger, dare; venture, presume," from Proto-Germanic *ders- (cf. Old Norse dearr, Old High German giturran, Gothic gadaursan), from PIE *dhers- "to dare, be courageous" (cf. Sanskrit dadharsha "to be bold;" Old Persian darš- "to dare;" Greek thrasys "bold;" Old Church Slavonic druzate "to be bold, dare;" Lithuanian dristi "to dare," drasus "courageous").
An Old English irregular preterite-present verb: darr, dearst, dear were first, second and third person singular present indicative; mostly regularized 16c., though past tense dorste survived as durst, but is now dying, persisting mainly in northern English dialect. Meaning "to challenge or defy (someone)" is first recorded 1570s.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with dare say
dare say
see I dare say.
Show More
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.