intrepid

adjective

in·trep·id in-ˈtre-pəd

Synonyms of intrepid

: characterized by resolute fearlessness, fortitude, and endurance

an intrepid explorer

intrepidity

ˌin-trə-ˈpi-də-tē

noun

intrepidly

in-ˈtre-pəd-lē

adverb

intrepidness noun

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Don't Be Afraid to Learn About Intrepid

If you’re going to name a ship, whether an aircraft carrier or an interstellar starship, you could do worse than to name it the Intrepid, as both the United States military and Star Trek writers have done, respectively. (Technically “Intrepid” is a class of Trek ships that includes the Voyager, etc., but you get the drift.) Intrepid, after all, comes from the Latin word intrepidus, itself formed by the combination of the prefix in-, meaning “not,” and the adjective trepidus, meaning “alarmed.” When not designating sea or space vessels, intrepid aptly describes anyone—from explorers to reporters—who ventures bravely into unknown territory, though often you’ll see the word loaded with irony, as in “an intrepid couch surfer endeavored to watch every installment of the beloved sci-fi series in chronological order.” Intrepid word lovers may be interested to know of the existence of trepid, meaning “fearful”; it predates intrepid but most are too trepid (or simply unaware of its existence) to use it.

Examples of intrepid in a Sentence

The heroes are intrepid small-business owners, investigative reporters, plaintiffs and their lawyers, and, of course, Nader himself and his grass-roots organizations. —Jonathan Chait, New York Times Book Review, 3 Feb. 2008

Author and explorer Dame Freya Stark was one of the most intrepid adventurers of all time. (T. E. Lawrence, no slouch in the travel department himself, called her "gallant" and "remarkable.") —Kimberly Robinson, Travel & Leisure, December 1999

Meanwhile, the intrepid Florentine traveler Marco Polo had been to China and brought back with him a noodle dish that became Italian pasta … —Norman F. Cantor, The Civilization of the Middle Ages, 1993

an intrepid explorer who probed parts of the rain forest never previously attempted

Recent Examples on the Web

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The Kenyan-shot film follows two intrepid Nairobi women who decide to transform what used to be a whites-only library until 1958 into a vibrant cultural hub. —Zac Ntim, Deadline, 10 Feb. 2025 Only the most intrepid travelers followed, as Laos, Southeast Asia’s only landlocked country, operated few — and no long-haul — flights, and potholed and shoddy roads were the norm. —The New York Times News Service Syndicate, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Feb. 2025 The first loud cheer of the night set the tone for this intrepid reporter. —Kyle Feldscher, CNN, 4 Feb. 2025 Among the notable voice talents are Isla Fisher as an intrepid TV reporter, Stephen Root as Petey’s cranky father, and, in smaller roles, Laraine Newman, Cheri Oteri, Melissa Villaseñor, and Kate Micucci. —Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for intrepid