Word of the Day
: April 21, 2025bodacious
playWhat It Means
Bodacious is used as an informal synonym of remarkable and noteworthy, as well as sexy and voluptuous. In some dialects of the Southern and Midland US, bodacious is used by its oldest meaning: "outright, unmistakable."
// The bodacious decor of the boutique hotel is intended to appeal to the young and the hip.
bodacious in Context
"There’s no need to lug in a 6-foot specimen tree to add bodacious botanicals into your home, because even the smallest planters can make a big impact when intentionally pairing striking foliage with a unique vessel." — Kristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
Did You Know?
Some of our readers may know bodacious as a word that figured prominently in the lingo of the 1989 film Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. Others may recall the term's frequent use in the long-running "Snuffy Smith" comic strip. Neither the creators of the comic strip nor the movie can claim to have coined bodacious, which began appearing in print in the mid-1800s, but both surely contributed to its popularity. The exact origin of the word is uncertain, but it is most likely a blend of bold and audacious, and it may be linked to boldacious, a now-rare British dialect term meaning "brazen" or "impudent."
Test Your Vocabulary with M-W Quizzes
Test Your Vocabulary
Rearrange the letters to form an adjective used in slang to mean "excellent" or "cool": DLAACIR
VIEW THE ANSWERPodcast
More Words of the Day
-
Apr 22
liaison
-
Apr 20
resurrection
-
Apr 19
fastidious
-
Apr 18
collaborate
-
Apr 17
uncouth
-
Apr 16
adversity
