doughty
/ˈdaʊti
/adjective (doughtier, doughtiest) archaic or humorous
Brave and persistent: his doughty spirit kept him going...
- Then along came a doughty and persistent conservationist who fought to save the city's history: just what the doctor ordered.
- This way, the organization could live up to its self-professed image: the doughty defenders of brave iconoclasts bucking the establishment.
- London metropolitan types also think I possess a kind of doughty flinty independent spirit which they wish they had so they too could flee the bars of Charlotte Street and the watering holes of Soho.
Synonyms
fearless, dauntless, determined, resolute, indomitable, intrepid, plucky, spirited, game, mettlesome, gritty, steely, confident, undaunted, undismayed, unalarmed, unflinching, unshrinking, unabashed, unfaltering, unflagging, bold, audacious, valiant, brave, stout-hearted, lionhearted, gallant, courageous, heroic, daring, daredevil
informal gutsy, spunky, ballsy, feisty
Derivatives
doughtily
/ adverb ...- Mills offers a detailed account of his case against MMR, even doughtily settling a few scores on his behalf against his detractors.
doughtiness
- I had hopes that she, a campaigning journalist, would develop her twin strains of doughtiness and dottiness and become a thorn in the flesh.
- The following day a reporter from The Southwark Crier called at the shop, for news of Maisie's doughtiness had spread.
- As Aufidius, leader of the Volscians, he comes up with a nicely judged blend of doughtiness and perfidy, and the others give well-spoken, dependable, British supporting performances, unspectacular but resonant.
Origin
Late Old English dohtig, variant of dyhtig, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch duchtig and German tüchtig.