Entry Word: bold

Function: adjective

Meaning: 1 inclined or willing to take risks <our youngest brother was the boldest one in the family, instantly taking to everything from skiing to skateboarding>

Synonyms adventuresome, adventurous, audacious, daring, dashing, emboldened, enterprising, gutsy, hardy, nerved, nervy, venturesome, venturous

Related Words brash, daredevil, foolhardy, heedless, hotheaded, impetuous, imprudent, impulsive, incautious, madcap, overbold, overconfident, rash, reckless, spirited, thoughtless, wild; brave, courageous, dauntless, fearless, gallant, greathearted, heroic, intrepid, lionhearted, stalwart, stout, stouthearted, unafraid, undaunted, valiant, valorous; gritty, plucky, spirited, spunky; hasty, headlong, precipitate; absurd, asinine, balmy, brainless, crazy, foolish, half-witted, harebrained, insane, lunatic, mad, nutty, scatterbrained, silly, wacky, witless; unnecessary; dumb, idiotic, moronic, stupid; irrational, unreasonable

Near Antonyms chickenhearted, coward, cowardly, craven, lily-livered, pusillanimous, shy, timid, timorous; careful, cautious, heedful, prudent, wary; overcareful, overcautious; affrighted, afraid, alarmed, fainthearted, fearful, frightened, horrified, scared, shocked, spooked, startled, terrified, terrorized; unnerved; calm, cool, levelheaded, rational, reasonable, sage, sane, sensible, sound, wise; appalled, concerned, dismayed, upset, worried

Antonyms unadventurous, unenterprising

2 displaying or marked by rude boldness <youʼre a bold little brat for trying to steal my stuff while Iʼm right here> — see nervy 1
3 likely to attract attention <an interior decorator who likes to use bold colors> — see noticeable
4 showing a lack of proper social reserve or modesty <a bold child who interrupts the adults at his parentsʼ parties> — see presumptuous 1
5 having an incline approaching the perpendicular <the advanced climbers chose a bold cliff to test themselves> — see steep 1