dare

verb

\ ˈder

dared; daring; dares or (auxiliary) dare

Definition of dare

(Entry 1 of 4)

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 jump

b : 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

dare

noun

Definition of dare (Entry 2 of 4)

1 : an act or instance of daring (see dare entry 1 sense 1) : challenge crossed the river on a dare refused to take the dare

2 : imaginative or vivacious boldness : daring

DARE

abbreviation

Definition of DARE (Entry 3 of 4)

Dictionary of American Regional English

Dare

biographical name

\ ˈder

Definition of Dare (Entry 4 of 4)

Virginia 1587–? 1st child born in America of English parents

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Examples of dare in a Sentence

Verb

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 on the Web: Verb

But the army did not dare demolish an entire village again. — New York Times, "As Israel Pushes to Build, Bedouin Homes and School Face Demolition," 24 June 2018 With this small interaction, Ari and Joan join a rather large list of people Morgan has dared to mess with — which includes not only Little Mix, but also Lady Gaga and Emily Ratajkowski. — Sara Delgado, Teen Vogue, "Ariana Grande Said “Thank U, Next” to Piers Morgan When He Came After Her Mom and Little Mix," 21 Nov. 2018 Play of the game: Mondesi's sweet tag in the second was a product of Morrison daring to run on the vaunted arm of left fielder Alex Gordon. — Maria Torres, kansascity, "‘Fun-to-watch’ Mondesi continues to progress as Royals snap losing streak, beat Twins," 10 July 2018 The IMs is an experiment in making this posture cool-looking, with fractal body sculpting, daring interplays of light and shadow and dramatic vertical fender louvers—an Uber in Tron-land. — Dan Neil, WSJ, "Big Questions—and a Few Answers—Coming Out of the Detroit Auto Show," 17 Jan. 2019 Featuring a range of battle scenes, from clashes in remote valleys to daring helicopter flights, Chivers’s work reminds us to think about those fellow Americans in harm’s way — some of them needlessly — every day. — Vox Staff, Vox, "The most thought-provoking books the Vox staff read in 2018," 21 Dec. 2018 This year’s isn’t as conceptually daring, but the talent is deep. — Cate Mcquaid, BostonGlobe.com, "When student work is well worth studying," 4 July 2018 On his channel, Jordan has over 80,000 subscribers, and primarily documents his relationship with Mckeen and embarks on daring challenges like talking to her ex-boyfriend. — Madeline Buxton, refinery29.com, "Step Aside, Bachelors: Snapchat Is Taking A Stab At Reality Shows," 19 June 2018 But no white person would dare call another black person preto or preta without knowing their racial preference. — Kiratiana Freelon, The Root, "#Nigga, What? Afro-Brazilians Express Black Pride by Embracing a Problematic Word," 6 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The Australian had swallowed a live slug on a dare back then. — Eleanor Hildebrandt, Popular Mechanics, "How Parasites Can Lie Dormant for Years Before Killing You," 6 Nov. 2018 Inevitably, these types of conversations are awkward and mostly avoid where even the brave dare not go. — WSJ, "The Father-Son Talk in the Age of #MeToo," 30 Oct. 2018 But a stroll alone on the grounds of this Gothic Revival cathedral at night is more of a dare. — Condé Nast Traveler, "8 Most Haunted Cities In America and Why You Should Visit," 18 Oct. 2018 In the video, Warren commiserates with family members (including some Republicans) in her native Oklahoma and, most notably, accepts a dare from Trump to take a DNA test. — Michelle Ruiz, Vogue, "Looks Like a Certain U.S. President Owes Elizabeth Warren $1 Million for the Charity of Her Choice," 15 Oct. 2018 Emma Stone accepting a dance dare on The Ellen Show in 2012. — Sarah Lindig, Marie Claire, "43 Videos of Celebrities Dancing Like No One Is Watching," 31 July 2016 An eight-year-old girl died last year after drinking boiling water through a straw on a dare, according to HuffPost Please don’t pour boiling hot water on yourself or drink it. — Mckenzie Schwark, Teen Vogue, "Hot Water Challenge Results in Second Degree Burns For One Teen," 30 July 2018 In 2011 — acting on a dare from his teammates in the Arizona Fall League — Mikolas ate a live lizard in the bullpen. — Tyler Kepner, New York Times, "Miles Mikolas Took a Wild Journey to the Cardinals Rotation," 7 July 2018 Next, Joel chose to also do a dare, and was tasked with making up a country song on the spot. — Brianna Wiest, Teen Vogue, ""The Kissing Booth" Stars Joey King and Joel Courtney Play Truth or Dare," 2 July 2018

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.

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Last Updated

12 Mar 2019

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Time Traveler for dare

The first known use of dare was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for dare

dare

verb

English Language Learners Definition of dare

(Entry 1 of 2)

: to have enough courage or confidence to do something : to not be too afraid to do something

: to do (something that is difficult or that people are usually afraid to do)

: to tell (someone) to do something especially as a way of showing courage

dare

noun

English Language Learners Definition of dare (Entry 2 of 2)

: the act of telling someone to do something as a way of showing courage

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

dare

verb

\ ˈder

dared; daring

Kids Definition of dare

(Entry 1 of 2)

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.