1
chiefly US, informal + sometimes impolite
: ready to cause or get into trouble : mean
pretending to be a badass gunslinger—
L. L. King
L. L. King2
chiefly US, informal + sometimes impolite
: of formidable strength or skill
such a badass guitar player—N'Gai Croal
N'Gai Croal
chiefly US, informal + sometimes impolite
: a person who is badass
Examples of badass in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 14 May 2025
That was funny to find: how to be badass but run at movie speed.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 12 May 2025
Entertainment Weekly tracked down the galaxy’s biggest badass and spoke to Dulau about Kleya’s finest moment so far.
—EW.com, 5 May 2025
But Thandiwe Newton is so memorable as Val in Solo because her aviator-style coat with its white fur lining is such a perfect fit and so effectively establishes her as a capable badass who just happens to be serving face.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 22 Apr. 2025
The hit Netflix comedy Grace and Frankie featured not one but two badass grandmas played by screen legends Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2025
Alex gets to show a lot more of her badass strength this season that Beth has an incredible amount of, so that was exciting.
—Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Mar. 2025
Rest assured, Dedra is still a total badass on a mission, and Syril is willing to go to (almost) any lengths to advance the Imperial cause.
—Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 14 Apr. 2025
At first, Bacon’s macho lead role seems like a run-of-the-mill badass: All one-liners, muscles and cool-guy poses.
—William Earl, Variety, 3 Apr. 2025
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Noun
Hilson, who played the young Beth in This Is Us flashbacks, is suitably badass as someone whose race, gender, age, and size keep forcing establishment white guys to underestimate her.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 14 May 2025
That was funny to find: how to be badass but run at movie speed.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 12 May 2025
Entertainment Weekly tracked down the galaxy’s biggest badass and spoke to Dulau about Kleya’s finest moment so far.
—EW.com, 5 May 2025
But Thandiwe Newton is so memorable as Val in Solo because her aviator-style coat with its white fur lining is such a perfect fit and so effectively establishes her as a capable badass who just happens to be serving face.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 22 Apr. 2025
The hit Netflix comedy Grace and Frankie featured not one but two badass grandmas played by screen legends Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2025
Alex gets to show a lot more of her badass strength this season that Beth has an incredible amount of, so that was exciting.
—Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Mar. 2025
Rest assured, Dedra is still a total badass on a mission, and Syril is willing to go to (almost) any lengths to advance the Imperial cause.
—Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 14 Apr. 2025
At first, Bacon’s macho lead role seems like a run-of-the-mill badass: All one-liners, muscles and cool-guy poses.
—William Earl, Variety, 3 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Badass.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/badass. Accessed 25 May. 2025.
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