M. J. McClary
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If the idea of a carbonated bevvy flavored with gentian root makes you thirsty to wet your whistle, then you’ve got some moxie, friend! Lowercase moxie—which today is a synonym of both nerve and verve—originated as uppercase Moxie, as in Moxie Nerve Food, a patent medicine and tonic invented by Dr. Augustin Thompson and sold in New England in the 1870s. Within a decade, when it was clear his drink wasn’t really medicinal, he carbonated Moxie and marketed it as a kind of 19th-century energy drink with a “delicious blend of the bitter and the sweet.” The soft drink and its advertising slogans (among them Make Mine Moxie!) eventually caught on around the country. The beverage was even a favorite of Charlotte’s Web author E. B. White, who wrote, “Moxie contains gentian root, which is the path to the good life.” The semantic jump from “a drink that gives you energy” to “energy” itself is as natural as a good advertising campaign. By 1930, moxie had acquired its earliest modern sense referring to vim and pep.
Examples of moxie in a Sentence
Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 July 2025
Though several Democrats are starting to make moves toward 2028, liberals have struggled with the lack of a main character to match Trump's political moxie the way then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi did in his first term.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 28 June 2025
This tale of style and moxie proves that opposites not only attract but can enrich the lives of anyone willing to take a chance on themselves and on true love.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 24 June 2025
Overcoming these hurdles requires a unique blend of passion, knowledge, and moxie.
—Irene S. Levine, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for moxie
Cite this Entry
“Moxie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moxie. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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