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audacious

adjective
au·​da·​cious | \ ȯ-ˈdā-shəs How to pronounce audacious (audio) \

Definition of audacious

1a : intrepidly daring : adventurous an audacious mountain climber
b : recklessly bold : rash an audacious maneuver
2 : contemptuous of law, religion, or decorum : insolent an audacious maverick
3 : marked by originality and verve audacious experiments
Other Words from audacious Synonyms & Antonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about audacious

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Other Words from audacious

audaciously adverb
audaciousness noun

Did You Know?

Shakespeare used "audacious" seven times in his plays. That in itself wasn't exactly an act of bold originality. The word, which comes from the Latin root audac- ("bold"), had been around for decades. But the Bard was the first to use "audacious" in its "insolent" sense ("Obey, audacious traitor; kneel for grace," Henry VI Part 2), and he may have been the first to use the adverb "audaciously." "Audacious" itself was something of an innovation in the 16th century: it was one of the earliest "-acious" words in English. Subsequently, we've added lots of "-acious" adjectives to our lexicon, including "pugnacious," "loquacious," "voracious," and even, in the 19th century, "bodacious" (which is most likely a combination of "bold" and "audacious").

Examples of audacious in a Sentence

Whatever made him think his audacious fiction would sell—especially after a lifetime of literary marginalization—is a mystery, but he has certainly been vindicated. With a rush of work that he did not begin publishing until he was in his forties, he won literary fame in Europe and Latin America. — Valerie Sayers, Commonweal, 13 July 2007 This is an audacious claim, and Kramer anticipates, even encourages, the controversy it might provoke. — Gary Greenberg, Harper's, August 2005 … Morgan Pressel, the top-ranked female amateur in the country, has charted a less audacious course. A 17-year-old scrapper who gained prominence by tying for second at the U.S. Women's Open in June, Pressel is satisfied with taking on and whipping her own kind. — E. M. Swift, Sports Illustrated, 8 Aug. 2005 … he owns and operates a seductively spacious jazz club. But that's his day job, his cover. He executes his audacious midnight burglaries outside of the city, working solo, mapping out every detail so that nothing can go wrong, then returning like a phantom. — Owen Gliberman, Entertainment Weekly, 20 July 2001 They have audacious plans for the new school. This is her most audacious film so far. She made an audacious decision to quit her job.
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Recent Examples on the Web

 Grubbs began wondering about something audacious: Why not try tagging one from a sub, in their natural deep-water environment? — National Geographic, "Scientists tag deep-sea shark hundreds of feet underwater—a first," 5 Sep. 2019 At a closed-door meeting before the race started, Tour director Christian Prudhomme urged riders to be more audacious in their strategies after a somewhat boring start to the race last year. — Washington Post, "Technology beating romanticism at Tour de France," 16 July 2019 At a closed-door meeting before the race started, Tour director Christian Prudhomme urged riders to be more audacious in their strategies after a somewhat boring start to the race last year. — Samuel Petrequin, SFChronicle.com, "Technology beating romanticism at Tour de France," 16 July 2019 But Newsom didn’t flex his muscle to help arguably the most audacious housing measure in Sacramento: SB50. — Joe Garofoli, SFChronicle.com, "Gig-worker bill: Gavin Newsom keeps his distance from California’s big fight," 15 Aug. 2019 Longtime Washingtonians may recall its role in one of the most audacious pranks ever played in town. — John Kelly, Washington Post, "In 1969, Gonzaga students tweaked their rivals with the mother of all pranks," 5 Aug. 2019 And in its most audacious touch, the picture grapples — troublingly, outrageously, resonantly — with the horror of the Charles Manson murders, becoming the latest Tarantino joint to blur the boundaries between actual and cinematic carnage. — Los Angeles Times, "Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,’ the haunting work of a filmmaker running out of time," 26 July 2019 Facebook’s plans for Libra are the most audacious yet to bring digital currencies to the masses. — Steven Russolillo, WSJ, "Washington Has Doubts About Facebook’s Libra Payments Network," 12 July 2019 The most audacious—and largest-ever—canine clinical trial is designed to prevent, not cure cancer. — Michele Cohen Marill, WIRED, "Why Dogs Now Play a Big Role in Human Cancer Research," 12 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'audacious.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of audacious

1550, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

History and Etymology for audacious

borrowed from Middle French audacieux, from audace "daring, recklessness" (borrowed from Latin audācia, from audāc-, audāx "daring, bold, excessively daring, reckless" + -ia -ia entry 1) + -ieux -ious); audāx from audēre "to intend, dare, venture" (verbal derivative of avidus "ardent, eager, greedy") + -āc-, deverbal suffix denoting habitual or successful performance (probably going back to Indo-European *-eh2, noun ending + *-k-, suffixal formative) — more at avid

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More Definitions for audacious

audacious

adjective
How to pronounce audacious (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of audacious

: very confident and daring : very bold and surprising or shocking

See the full definition for audacious in the English Language Learners Dictionary

audacious

adjective
au·​da·​cious | \ ȯ-ˈdā-shəs How to pronounce audacious (audio) \

Kids Definition of audacious

1 : very bold and daring : fearless an audacious scheme
2 : disrespectful of authority : insolent an audacious radio personality

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