dare
take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission
How often you will meet it
Rank 904 of 71,295 words measured. It occurs 20,413 times across 155,139 chapters — 0.010% of every word in the library.
It belongs to the first 1,000 words, the band worth learning before any other.
What it means
verb
- take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission also: make bold, presume How dare you call my lawyer?
- to be courageous enough to try or do something I don't dare call himshe dares to dress differently from the others
- challenge also: defy I dare you!
noun
- a challenge to do something dangerous or foolhardy also: daring he could never refuse a dare
dare in real books
Each sentence below was written by a published author and is taken from a different book in our library. Open one to read the passage it came from, with narration.
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I dare swear I got no more than my deserts.
The Hill: A Romance of Friendship · Horace Annesley Vachell · Chapter 1
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So now, impossible as this new story sounded, they didn't dare laugh at it.
The Adventures of Prickly Porky · Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo) Burgess · Chapter 1
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Now, I dare say, you never got up at three o’clock on a midsummer morning.
The Water-Babies · Charles Kingsley · Chapter 1
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Unhappy!--he, a man, who has liberty and strength, who may undertake every thing, attempt any thing, dare any thing.
Other People's Money · Emile Gaboriau · Chapter 1
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It is a silly habit, I dare say, but somehow it seems to bring a great deal of romance into one’s life.
The Picture of Dorian Gray · Oscar Wilde · Chapter 1