Meaning & use
audacious
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Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Willing to take bold risks; daring and confident, often in a way that impresses people.
Grammar: Gradable: you can say very audacious or more audacious. Usually describes people or actions.
Patterns
- an audacious plan
- an audacious move
- audacious enough to do something
She made an audacious attempt to break the world record.
It was an audacious plan, but it just might work.
He was audacious enough to ask the CEO for a raise on his first day.
adjectivecomparabledisapproving
Showing a shocking lack of respect; impudent or insolent.
Grammar: Often used in phrases like an audacious lie or an audacious remark. Can sound critical.
Patterns
- an audacious remark
- an audacious lie
- be audacious to someone
His audacious comments offended everyone at the table.
She told an audacious lie to cover up her mistake.
The student's audacious behavior toward the teacher shocked the class.
Word forms
| comparative | more audacious |
|---|---|
| superlative | most audacious |
Common combinations
- audacious plan
- The company announced an audacious plan to colonize Mars.
- audacious move
- Buying that competitor was an audacious move.
- audacious attempt
- He made an audacious attempt to swim the English Channel.
- audacious claim
- The scientist made an audacious claim that contradicted all previous research.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bold
- Bold means confident and brave, but lacks the sense of risk or shocking daring that audacious often implies.
- daring
- Daring emphasizes willingness to take risks; audacious often adds a note of surprising boldness or impudence.
- brazen
- Brazen means shamelessly bold, usually in a disapproving way; audacious can be admiring or critical depending on context.
- impudent
- Impudent means rude and disrespectful, focusing on the shocking lack of respect; audacious can also mean boldly impressive.
Opposites
Word family
- audacity noun
- The quality of being audacious; boldness or daring, sometimes shocking rudeness.
- audaciously adverb
- In an audacious manner.
Commonly confused: audacious or audible? audacious or auspicious?
audacious vs audible
Audible means able to be heard, while audacious means bold or daring.
audacious vs auspicious
Auspicious means showing signs of future success, while audacious means bold or daring.
Practice
The young entrepreneur made an ______ bet on a new technology that everyone else thought was too risky.
Choose one answer.
The sentence describes a bold, risky bet, so 'audacious' fits. 'Audible' means able to be heard. 'Auspicious' means promising success. 'Auditorily' is an adverb and would not modify 'bet'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “audacious”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.