daring

daring — adjective

1. a daring person, action, or plan shows a willingness to face danger, try new thi

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

a daring person, action, or plan shows a willingness to face danger, try new things, or behave in ways that others might find shocking or unusual

Example

The firefighter's daring rescue of the trapped child made the evening news.

collocation: daring rescue

Ayana planned a daring escape from the locked room using only a paper clip.

collocation: daring escape

Common collocations
  • daring rescue
  • daring escape
  • daring plan
  • daring move
  • daring question
  • daring attempt
Synonyms
  • bold

    suggests confidence and willingness to speak or act, often without a strong danger element

  • adventurous

    focuses on seeking new experiences rather than facing danger

  • courageous

    emphasises moral strength in the face of fear; more serious and respectful than daring

Antonyms
  • timid

    lacks the willingness to take any risk at all

  • cautious

    carefully avoids unnecessary risks and is often seen as a sensible quality

Usage Note

Commonly modifies nouns such as rescue, escape, plan, move, or question. Unlike brave, daring often carries a tone of excitement or mild shock at the risk involved.

Common Mistakes

She was daring enough to save the child from the fire.
She was brave enough to save the child from the fire.
brave is the usual word for acts of moral courage or saving lives; daring suggests taking an exciting or unconventional risk.

daring — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Bold describes someone who is confident and unafraid to speak or act, but it does not always involve danger — a bold colour choice or a bold statement can be perfectly safe. Adventurous focuses on a love of new experiences, especially travel or exploration, rather than on confronting danger. Courageous is the most serious of the four: it implies moral or physical bravery in the face of genuine fear or hardship, often for a worthy cause. Audacious overlaps with daring but carries a stronger suggestion of disrespect or rule-breaking — an audacious plan might be exciting or shocking. For example, a daring rescue is physically risky; an audacious theft breaks rules with nerve; a courageous act saves someone at personal cost; a bold design simply stands out.

bold ↗adventurous ↗courageous ↗audacious

Common collocations

Adverbs

  • daringly

Phrases

  • enough daring to
  • act of daring

Prepositions

Etymology

Proto-Indo-EuropeanProto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

Daring comes from the verb dare (to have the courage to do something), which traces back to Old English durran, meaning 'to be bold, venture, or have courage'. This word shares ancient roots with the Greek tharsos (courage) and the Sanskrit dhrshnoti (he dares). The -ing suffix turns the verb into an adjective (and later a noun), giving the sense of 'someone who dares' or 'the quality of daring'.