impudence
Americannoun
-
the quality or state of being impudent; effrontery; insolence.
- Synonyms:
- boldness, lip, face, brazenness, brass, rudeness, impertinence, gall, nerve, pertness, sauce, presumption
- Antonyms:
- courtesy
-
impudent conduct or language.
-
Obsolete. lack of modesty; shamelessness.
noun
-
the quality of being impudent
-
an impudent act or statement
Etymology
Origin of impudence
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin impudentia shamelessness. See impudent, -ence
Explanation
When you show impudence, you lack shame about your rude behavior. Examples of impudence? Not tipping the waiter, sticking your tongue out, tripping your grandmother — you get the picture. The noun impudence is derived from the Latin impudentia, "shamelessness." Being rude is a main trait of impudence; another is doing something you're not supposed to do — usually with an attitude that shows you don't care. When you are acting with impudence, you are usually overstepping your boundaries — like a kid who challenges his parents and can't accept "Because I said so!" as a reason for discipline.
Vocabulary lists containing impudence
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
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Fever 1793
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The Lightning Thief
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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.
“The impudence of a bawd is modesty compared with that of a convert,” said George Savile, the first marquess of Halifax.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 8, 2026
The AI-generated Angie seems a bit overdone when compared to the more conflicted human original, whose moodiness shifts mercurially between impudence and ambivalence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2025
WSU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle made Smith pay for his impudence.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 10, 2023
"It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously," Hitler explained.
From Salon ● Feb. 3, 2022
Even the little tail curled up with an impudence that made Tree-ear smile.
From "A Single Shard" by Linda Sue Park
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
