emboldened

adjective

em·​bold·​ened im-ˈbōl-dənd 

: made bold or bolder : instilled with boldness, courage, or resolution

"This is the way it's gonna be," Stoddard announced. He had reason to feel emboldened. So far, Tom Murphy and Dan Burke had backed his every decision.

—Ken Auletta

If the participant moves toward the creature, it avoids contact. But if the person doesn't move, the emboldened sprite edges closer and finally lands on an outstretched hand.

—Ivars Peterson

Synonyms

• adventuresome
• adventurous
• audacious
• bold
• daring
• dashing
• enterprising
• free-swinging
• gutsy
• hardy
• nerved
• nervy
• venturesome
• venturous

Examples of emboldened in a Sentence

not too surprisingly, rock climbing tends to attract the more emboldened seekers of outdoor adventure

Recent Examples on the Web

After rumors swirled for weeks about Biden potentially dropping out of the race and Biden made his formal announcement, more and more members of Hollywood seem to feel emboldened supporting Harris and speaking about the 2024 election in general. —Krystie Lee Yandoli, Rolling Stone, 22 July 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin, for example, may then feel emboldened to take more risks in Ukraine. —Joshua Byun, Foreign Affairs, 18 July 2024

If control of Congress or the White House flips with the November election, the Biden administration’s rules could be repealed under an emboldened Congress even before the January swearing in of new officeholders. —Kff Health News, The Mercury News, 18 July 2024

Here, spiritual infractions are met with savage physical punishment and some of the more grotesque images in recent horror memory (which, as the genre has become ever more popular and emboldened, is seriously saying something). —Dennis Perkins and Chris Bellamy, EW.com, 5 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1569, in the meaning defined above