Synonyms of daring

daring 1 of 4

adjective

ˈder-iŋ 

as in adventurous

inclined or willing to take risks

daring acrobats who risk life and limb every day for the entertainment of the crowds at the circus

Synonyms & Similar Words

• adventurous
• bold
• brave
• fearless
• courageous
• audacious
• venturous
• adventuresome
• venturesome
• gutsy
• enterprising
• hardy
• dashing
• reckless
• impulsive
• nerved
• heroic
• heroical
• gallant
• foolish
• emboldened
• valiant
• nervy
• foolhardy
• free-swinging
• unafraid
• impetuous
• imprudent
• daredevil
• intrepid
• stupid
• dauntless
• spirited
• thoughtless
• rash
• undaunted
• madcap
• wild
• incautious
• heedless
• silly
• dumb
• valorous
• brash
• hotheaded
• overconfident
• plucky
• hasty
• spunky
• mad
• headlong
• absurd
• unnecessary
• overbold
• stalwart
• gritty
• wacky
• swashbuckling
• insane
• idiotic
• unreasonable
• stouthearted
• lunatic
• harebrained
• crazy
• irrational
• stout
• asinine
• whacky
• lionhearted
• nutty
• witless
• moronic
• precipitate
• scatterbrained
• brainless
• balmy
• greathearted
• gadarene
• idiotical
• half-witted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• timid
• careful
• cautious
• unadventurous
• cowardly
• shy
• coward
• timorous
• prudent
• wary
• craven
• afraid
• pusillanimous
• unenterprising
• milky
• fearful
• frightened
• heedful
• overcautious
• startled
• scared
• terrified
• alarmed
• reasonable
• shocked
• wise
• spooked
• rational
• horrified
• sensible
• sound
• chickenhearted
• unnerved
• cool
• calm
• lily-livered
• sane
• affrighted
• poltroon
• milk-livered
• overcareful
• upset
• fainthearted
• levelheaded
• concerned
• worried
• sage
• terrorized
• dismayed
• appalled

daring

2 of 4

noun (1)

as in courage

strength of mind to carry on in spite of danger

the daring that the early explorers of Oceania must have had

Synonyms & Similar Words

• courage
• bravery
• heroism
• gallantry
• courageousness
• prowess
• nerve
• fearlessness
• valor
• intrepidity
• hardihood
• daringness
• virtue
• guts
• stoutness
• heart
• gutsiness
• intrepidness
• dauntlessness
• pecker
• gumption
• bottle
• moxie
• determination
• fortitude
• intestinal fortitude
• greatheartedness
• mettle
• boldness
• grit
• pluck
• perseverance
• audacity
• doughtiness
• spunk
• stamina
• temper
• tenacity
• endurance
• backbone
• resolution
• temerity
• effrontery
• fiber
• pluckiness
• stomach
• gall
• brazenness
• cojones
• cheek

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cowardice
• timidity
• cowardliness
• fearfulness
• spinelessness
• timorousness
• cold feet
• softness
• weakness
• feebleness
• faintheartedness
• dastardliness
• cravenness
• hesitation
• impotence
• poltroonery
• indecision
• ineffectualness
• irresolution
• mousiness
• indecisiveness

daringness

3 of 4

noun (2)

as in heroism

strength of mind to carry on in spite of danger

the sheer daringness of Hannibal's trek over the Alps with the aid of elephants

Synonyms & Similar Words

• courage
• heroism
• bravery
• courageousness
• gallantry
• prowess
• daring
• fearlessness
• nerve
• valor
• intrepidity
• intrepidness
• virtue
• gutsiness
• hardihood
• stoutness
• dauntlessness
• heart
• guts
• fortitude
• pecker
• moxie
• bottle
• determination
• gumption
• grit
• intestinal fortitude
• perseverance
• stamina
• greatheartedness
• tenacity
• spunk
• doughtiness
• boldness
• mettle
• pluckiness
• temper
• endurance
• audacity
• resolution
• pluck
• backbone
• fiber
• effrontery
• temerity
• stomach
• brazenness
• gall
• cojones
• cheek

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cowardice
• timidity
• cowardliness
• spinelessness
• fearfulness
• softness
• timorousness
• weakness
• faintheartedness
• feebleness
• cold feet
• dastardliness
• cravenness
• impotence
• hesitation
• poltroonery
• ineffectualness
• indecision
• irresolution
• indecisiveness
• mousiness

daring

4 of 4

verb

present participle of dare

1

as in challenging

to invite (someone) to take part in a contest or to perform a feat

I dare you to repeat that to my face!

he dared his friend to race to the end of the block

Synonyms & Similar Words

• challenging
• confronting
• stumping
• defying
• braving
• breasting
• bearding
• brazening
• facing
• outbraving
• outfacing

2

as in confronting

to oppose (something hostile or dangerous) with firmness or courage

every day the old fisherman dared the elements to make his meager living

Synonyms & Similar Words

• confronting
• facing
• braving
• defying
• withstanding
• breasting
• encountering
• resisting
• standing up to
• brazening
• challenging
• outbraving
• fighting
• bearding
• affronting
• outfacing
• fronting
• meeting
• approaching
• standing
• facing up (to)
• opposing
• accosting
• combatting
• repelling
• cornering
• battling
• combating
• contending (with)
• squaring (off)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dodging
• avoiding
• sidestepping
• shirking
• ducking
• shunning
• eschewing
• funking
• shaking
• escaping
• evading
• eluding

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective daring contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of daring are adventurous, daredevil, foolhardy, rash, reckless, and venturesome. While all these words mean "exposing oneself to danger more than required by good sense," daring implies fearlessness in courting danger.

daring mountain climbers

When is it sensible to use adventurous instead of daring?

The meanings of adventurous and daring largely overlap; however, adventurous implies a willingness to accept risks but not necessarily imprudence.

adventurous pioneers

In what contexts can daredevil take the place of daring?

Although the words daredevil and daring have much in common, daredevil stresses ostentation in daring.

daredevil motorcyclists

When can foolhardy be used instead of daring?

In some situations, the words foolhardy and daring are roughly equivalent. However, foolhardy suggests a recklessness that is inconsistent with good sense.

the foolhardy sailor ventured into the storm

When is rash a more appropriate choice than daring?

The synonyms rash and daring are sometimes interchangeable, but rash suggests imprudence and lack of forethought.

a rash decision

When would reckless be a good substitute for daring?

The words reckless and daring are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, reckless implies heedlessness of probable consequences.

a reckless driver

When could venturesome be used to replace daring?

While the synonyms venturesome and daring are close in meaning, venturesome implies a jaunty eagerness for perilous undertakings.

venturesome stunt pilots

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of daring

Adjective

The Arapahoe County officers returned the raccoon to its natural habitat after the daring rescue at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, sheriff’s officials said in the post. —Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 21 July 2025

The Tinder Swindler producer Raw and Amblin Documentaries are teaming on a Netflix doc about one of the world’s most daring diamond heists. —Max Goldbart, Deadline, 16 July 2025

Noun

There’s an existential premise at work regarding the socially destructive power of technology, and Tregenza, having dropped hints along the way, eventually reveals it with an artistic shock of enormous daring. —Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2025

Peeking above aquamarine waves that hide the world's second-largest barrier reef, Belize's Ambergris Caye first emerged as a destination for the daring. —Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 2 Feb. 2025

Verb

But the polesitter was in no mood to finish third, immediately regaining the lead with a daring overtake to set the tone for the sprint. —Reuters, 29 Mar. 2025

If anything, becoming a weird little guy, by my definition, is about rejecting the despair that leads down those kinds of regressive paths, and daring to care about something, even — and perhaps especially — if that something might seem kind of dumb or trivial to the outside world. —James Factora, Them., 28 Mar. 2025