dauntless
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of dauntless
Explanation
A dauntless person is someone who isn't easily frightened or intimidated. If your dance moves bring to mind a marionette being jerked around by a five-year-old but you jump on the dance floor anyway, you could be considered dauntless. The adjective dauntless is a variant of the noun daunt, which means "to intimidate or cause fear." Both words are related to another family of "D" words — dominate, domestic, domain. They all go back to the Latin root domare, which means "to tame." If you're dauntless, it means you're like a tiger or a wild horse — you can't be dominated or tamed.
Vocabulary lists containing dauntless
Power Suffix: -less
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"The Masque of the Red Death" by Edgar Allan Poe
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act III
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Then came a new refrain, determined and dauntless: “Pali strong!”
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 12, 2025
The film, which Focus Features will release in 250 nationwide theaters on June 30, shines a warm spotlight on a much-misunderstood community, and three of its most dauntless champions.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 22, 2023
They hoped the plucky, dauntless McAuliffe would serve as a nostalgic link to the early days of the space program, when celebrity astronauts such as Neil Armstrong and John Glenn were viewed as beloved pioneers.
From Washington Post • Jun. 18, 2021
Diligent and dauntless, she reinvented herself again and began looking after several family properties, managing the farms and overseeing the workers.
From Washington Times • May 1, 2020
But the letter—which clearly states that she wanted to quit—reminds us that even dauntless women can have their moments of doubt.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
