plucky
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- pluckily adverb
- pluckiness noun
Etymology
Origin of plucky
Explanation
To be plucky is to show courage. Plucky people are often underdogs fighting against the odds, like a plucky kid who scares away a burglar or a plucky kitten who refuses to run away from a Great Dane. Pluck is courage or heart, so to be plucky is to have those qualities. This word describes brave people and actions, and it means about the same as feisty and spunky. It often applies to people who bravely struggle against powerful forces. A short person playing basketball is plucky. You can be plucky in fighting a terrible disease. Anyone who refuses to give up, no matter what, is plucky.
Vocabulary lists containing plucky
A Doll's House
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Dragonwings
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Lyddie
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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.
Cristiano Ronaldo, meanwhile, says Sir Alex Ferguson told him to cut out the step-overs when he was a plucky youngster at Manchester United baiting Premier League full-backs.
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
And though the devastation wrought by last year’s fire was unprecedented in its scale, the Schneiders remain optimistic about the future of their beloved enclave and its plucky local paper.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 7, 2026
Of course, for fans of rival teams with fewer -- or zero -- Super Bowls in their trophy cabinets, the notion of the Patriots as plucky underdogs might be hard to swallow.
From Barron's • Feb. 3, 2026
Time and time again on “Parks and Recreation,” the intrepid and plucky Leslie cut through legislative red tape and won over her enemies, and the ones she couldn’t persuade always looked like cold-hearted fools.
From Salon • Jan. 16, 2026
Just ask a long-grieving widow whose husband drowned in a medicinal tar pit, or a plucky young governess who spent more than half her life wondering whether she might someday see her parents again.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
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.
