The opposite of afraid, this is a great term to use to talk about someone who inspires you with his or her courage. This term brings to mind a hero or someone who participates in an extreme sport. This term is just the opposite of fearful–someone who is fearless appears to have no fear.

In English, it’s an acceptable word to use, but it has a medieval connotation for example, “The valiant knight in shining armor.” It derives from French, meaning to be of value. One of the most formal ways to describe bravery, this term is a cognate in many Latin languages like Spanish and Portuguese. These terms are listed from most formal to least formal/vulgar 1. Valiant So, with a little bit of bravery, let’s jump into this lesson! 16 Ways to Talk about Bravery There is a very famous expression from Latin that says, “Fortune favors the brave.” This means that we create our own luck by making courageous decisions, like the decision to start on the rough journey of learning another language.

These terms are great for expressing your exact thoughts, having richer speech and writing, and complimenting someone. Pay attention to the etymology of some of these words, which I’ll site below. This is because it has developed from a mélange of many different languages AND a complex history. Remember that English has one of the largest vocabularies of any language.

That said, today we are going to look at some of the most common ways to talk about bravery in English. What’s one of the secrets of having native-like fluency? A broad vocabulary of course! And not just knowing fancy, formal words, but also the slang and expressions that we use in our daily lives.

Synonyms for brave