daring

[dair-ing]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR daring ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

adventurous courage; boldness.

adjective

bold or courageous; fearless or intrepid; adventurous.

Origin of daring

First recorded in 1575–85; dare + -ing¹, -ing²

Related formsdar·ing·ly, adverbdar·ing·ness, nounqua·si-dar·ing, adjectivequa·si-dar·ing·ly, adverbun·dar·ing, adjective

Synonyms for daring

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR daring ON THESAURUS.COM

1. audacity, bravery. 2. dauntless, undaunted, venturesome, audacious, brave.

Antonyms for daring

1. caution.

dare

[dair]

verb (used without object), dared or (Archaic) durst; dared; daring; present singular 3rd person dares or dare.

to have the necessary courage or boldness for something; be bold enough: You wouldn't dare!

verb (used with object), dared or (Archaic) durst; dared; daring; present singular 3rd person dares or dare.

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.

auxiliary verb

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.

noun

an act of daring or defiance; challenge.

Idioms

dare say, daresay.

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

Related formsdar·er, nounre·dare, verb (used with object), re·dared, re·dar·ing.un·dared, adjective

Synonyms for dare

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR dare ON THESAURUS.COM

2. hazard, risk, brave.

Synonym 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. 2019

Related Words for daring

foolhardy, bold, fearless, audacious, impulsive, gutsy, smart, courageous, reckless, fearlessness, audacity, grit, spunk, cockiness, forward, game, brave, rash, courageousness, nerve

Examples from the Web for daring

Contemporary Examples of daring

The Bees Laline Paull (Ecco) This arresting debut novel is a daring dystopian story set in a beehive.
The Best Fiction of 2014: Ford, Ferrante, Klay, and More
William O’Connor
December 7, 2014
Just like Watson, Ansari is daring to elicit antagonism and ignorant accusations on account of his feminist beliefs.
The Perils of Glitzy Celebrity Feminism Having a Moment
Amy Zimmerman
October 15, 2014
Not that Modern Family would ever make such a daring move at this point.
Stop Hating on ‘Modern Family’ (But Also Stop Giving It Emmys)
Jason Lynch
October 15, 2014
It is a tale of courage and commitment, daring and determination.
‘The Harness Maker’s Dream:’ The Unlikely Ranch King of Texas
Nick Kotz
September 20, 2014
Beautiful, daring and smart, Sophie managed to elude arrest on many occasions.
Meet 'The Queen of Thieves' Marm Mandelbaum, New York City's First Mob Boss
J. North Conway
September 7, 2014

Historical Examples of daring

Now it was another and older man, daring, intelligent, unscrupulous.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
What daring boldness, what a strange revolt of a patient against his doctor!
The Imaginary Invalid
Molire
Their thieves are the most daring and their agents the most cunning.
The Story of the Malakand Field Force
Sir Winston S. Churchill
At length the most daring of the "patriots" emitted a tentative hiss.
Camps, Quarters and Casual Places
Archibald Forbes
But it is not altogether courage and daring that endear him to our hearts.
Howard Pyle's Book of Pirates
Howard Pyle

British Dictionary definitions for daring

daring

adjective

bold or adventurous; reckless

noun

courage in taking risks; boldness

Derived Formsdaringly, adverb

dare

verb

(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

noun

a challenge to do something as proof of courage

something done in response to such a challenge

Derived Formsdarer, noun

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 daring

late 14c., verbal noun from dare (v.).

dare

1590s, from dare (v.).

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.