Definition of dare
dared
;daring
;dares
or (auxiliary)dare
auxiliary verb
: to be sufficiently courageous to no one dared say a word she dare not let herself love — G. B. Shaw
intransitive verb
: to have sufficient courage try it if you dare
transitive verb
1a : to challenge to perform an action especially as a proof of courage dared him to jumpb : to confront boldly : defy dared the anger of his family
2 : to have the courage to contend against, venture, or try the actress dared a new interpretation of the classic role
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Examples of dare in a Sentence
Try it if you dare.
We wanted to laugh but didn't dare.
The actress dared a new interpretation of the classic role.
She dared him to dive off the bridge.
She dared me to ask him out on a date. I did, and he said yes.
Recent Examples of dare from the Web
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None of his reforms dared to undercut the vast power of the Revolutionary Guard — which Rafsanjani briefly commanded, and which controls every key defense and strategic program.
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Now in the final act of his one-man play, Roof dares jurors to execute him.
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The result is a delicious drama of two alpha males butting heads: Rhoades (played by Paul Giamatti) wants to prosecute Axelrod for financial fraud, while the smooth, ever-calculating Axelrod (Damian Lewis) dares him to try.
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Somebody dared to broach the subject this week that Alabama could afford to lose this game and probably still make it into the four-team playoffs.
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The pontifical Aid to the Church in Need and the American Christian Aid Mission wrote in recent emails to me that no Christians dare shelter in the U.N. Zaatari camp in Jordan, which houses 80,000 Syrian refugees.
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After the bodies of Marina Menegazzo, 21, and María José Coni, 22, of Argentina, were discovered, social media erupted with a sad but familiar tactic: blaming the victims, who, in this case, dared to travel without male companions.
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Roberts told me that during her law career, no one would have dared suggest that the best lawyers accept anything less than their market value.
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Wood’s dances have long had a feminist bent, depicting women meeting obstacles with force and daring.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dare'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of dare
Middle English dar (1st & 3rd singular present indicative), from Old English dear; akin to Old High German gitar (1st & 3rd singular present indicative) dare, Greek tharsos courage
First Known Use: before 12th century
dare
Definition of dare
Recent Examples of dare from the Web
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So is France, where the incumbent president doesn’t dare stand for re-election; and Brazil, which impeached its president in August; and South Korea, which is expected to impeach its president later this week.
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A key part of the plan is a dare to the communities in which the lynchings took place.
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Players have to complete each dare within the time limit and the only way to win is to do every single one of them.
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Hunter, a vocal opponent of women serving in combat, offered the amendment as a dare, confident that progressives on gender equality in the service were all talk.
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And the rest of the movie follows through on that self-dare.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dare'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of dare
see 1dare
First Known Use: 1594
DARE
Definition of DARE
Dictionary of American Regional English
Other Literature Terms
Dare
playDefinition of Dare
Virginia 1587–? 1st child born in America of English parents
DARE Defined for English Language Learners
dare
playDefinition of dare for English Language Learners
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: to have enough courage or confidence to do something : to not be too afraid to do something
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: to do (something that is difficult or that people are usually afraid to do)
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: to tell (someone) to do something especially as a way of showing courage
dare
Definition of dare for English Language Learners
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: the act of telling someone to do something as a way of showing courage
DARE Defined for Kids
Definition of dare for Students
dared
;daring
1 : to have courage enough for some purpose : be bold enough Try it if you dare. —sometimes used as a helping verb The knight looked so solemn about it that Alice did not dare to laugh. — Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass
2 : to challenge to do something especially as a proof of courage I dare you to jump.
3 : to face with courage They dared the dangerous crossing.
Definition of dare for Students
: a challenge to do something as proof of courage I ate the hot pepper on a dare.
Learn More about dare
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See words that rhyme with dare Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for dare Spanish Central: Translation of dare Nglish: Translation of dare for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of dare for Arabic speakers
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