intrepidity

I1N1T1R1E1P3I1D2I1T1Y4

noun

The quality of being intrepid; bravery.

UncommonScrabble 17

Meanings

nounintrepidity (countable and uncountable, plural intrepidities)

plural intrepidities

  1. countableuncountableThe quality of being intrepid; bravery.

    And then I think I saw the most tremendous exhibition of moral courage and intrepidity that it is possible to conceive.

    1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, “Triumph”, in She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC, page 226
    4 more examples

    […] Pipes, who acted as the enemy's forlorn hope, advanced to the gate with great intrepidity, and clapping his foot to the door, which was none of the ſtouteſt, with the execution and diſpatch of a petard, ſplit it into a thouſand pieces.

    1751, [Tobias] Smollett, “He is Concerned in a Dangerous Adventure with a Certain Gardener; […]”, in The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle […], volume I, London: Harrison and Co., […], →OCLC, page 134

    Miss Bingley immediately fixed her eyes on his face, and desired he would tell her what lady had the credit of inspiring such reflections. Mr. Darcy replied with great intrepidity, "Miss Elizabeth Bennet."

    1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], chapter VI, in Pride and Prejudice: […], volume I, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, pages 57–58

    The pale, inscrutable determinateness, and flinchless intrepidity of Pierre, now began to domineer upon them; for any social unusualness or greatness is sometimes most impressive in the retrospect.

    1852 July, Herman Melville, “Book XXIV. Lucy at the Apostles’.”, in Pierre: Or, The Ambiguities, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC, section IV, page 445

    [T]here are common and covert ones [dangers], that "look like nothing" and that can be but inwardly and occultly dealt with, which involve the sharpest hazards to life and honour and the highest instant decisions and intrepidities of action.

    1907, Henry James, “Preface”, in The American (The Novels and Tales of Henry James; II), New York edition, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page xvii

    Synonyms: audacity, balls, bield, boldhead, boldness, bravehood, valor, braveness · Antonyms: cowardice, fearfulness, pusillanimity, cowardliness, poltroonery, chicken-heartedness, hen-heartedness

Synonyms & antonyms

More synonyms by meaning

nounresolute courageousness

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Frenchintrépide
  2. Englishintrepid
  3. Englishintrepidity

From intrepid + -ity.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian храброст, безстрашие
  • храброст (hrabrost)bravery
  • безстрашие (bezstrašie)bravery
Catalan ardidesa, intrepidesa
  • ardidesabravery
  • intrepidesabravery
Finnish pelottomuus
  • pelottomuusbravery
French intrépidité, bravoure
  • intrépiditébravery
  • bravourebravery
German Furchtlosigkeit
  • Furchtlosigkeitbravery
Polish nieustraszoność, dzielność
  • nieustraszonośćbravery
  • dzielnośćbravery
Cite this entry
APA

intrepidity. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/intrepidity

MLA

“intrepidity.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/intrepidity. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “intrepidity,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/intrepidity.

Source: intrepidity on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.