swashbuckler

[ swosh-buhk-ler, swawsh- ]

noun

1. a swaggering swordsman, soldier, or adventurer; daredevil.

swashbuckler

/ ˈswɒʃˌbʌklə /

noun

1. a swaggering or flamboyant adventurer
2. a film, book, play, etc, depicting excitement and adventure, esp in a historical setting

Word History and Origins

Origin of swashbuckler¹

First recorded in 1550–60; swash + buckler

Word History and Origins

Origin of swashbuckler¹

C16: from swash (in the archaic sense: to make the noise of a sword striking a shield) + buckler

Example Sentences

Made in 1952, the film stars Burt Lancaster as the pirate Captain Vallo, a classic swashbuckler who falls in love with a beautiful woman, and must save her from an odious marriage.

From TechCrunch

He seemed not at all the image of the irresponsible swashbuckler I'd carried with me for so long.

From The Daily Beast

A big swashbuckler of a man with a hard face, hard blue eyes with quizzical wrinkles around them.

From Project Gutenberg

He had plenty of wild, obscene wit, and early gained the reputation of being a swashbuckler.

From Project Gutenberg

When I came up I looked like a swashbuckler in one of Scudry's plays.

From Project Gutenberg

Cavalier in English was early applied in a contemptuous sense to an overbearing swashbuckler—a roisterer or swaggering gallant.

From Project Gutenberg

I felt that under the guise of an intellectual swashbuckler was a delicate and sensitive spirit.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• adventurer