Margo Zano
Brave, courageous and bold Is there a difference between these three adjectives? As far as I know brave and courageous are synonyms and bold has kind of negative meaning it's more like impudent...Am I right?
Apr 28, 2014 7:37 PM
Answers · 7
2
I'd say that brave and courageous have the same heroic meaning. Bold can mean the same but you're right, it's more likely to have a connotation of someone who is rudely pushing forward, someone who has no problem speaking to a person of authority or something like that. It's probably more a question of confidence whereas being brave or courageous is often used to describe a person who will act in spite of fear.
April 28, 2014
2
Brave and courageous are near perfect synonyms. Bold can have the connotation "brave" but can also mean "very confident" and (as you suggest) "impudent." It can have a negative connotation, but it need not be negative. It depends on the context. A rather famous line from the opening of an iconic 1960s US TV show (Star Trek) goes something like "To boldy go where no man has gone before" -- and in that context it was supposed to be (quite) positive.
April 28, 2014
I agree that bold doesn't necessarily have a bad connotation. A bold color (which would be like a very vibrant color). Someone with gumption, sass, or "balls" as we might say which certainly could get you into trouble, but I think bold just assumes that someone is not afraid to "go for it,"-- to take big action. but yeah, there's a slightly different connotation than bravery/courage which imply a hero whereas bold could be applied to someone who is a hero or a villain, or just daring. I really like the word.
April 28, 2014
I think the three mean the same, and bold doesn't have a negative meaning.
April 28, 2014
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