derring-do
1Derring — Der ring, a. Daring or warlike. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Drad for his derring doe and bloody deed. Spenser. [1913 Webster] …
2derring-do — n. brave and heroic deeds. [WordNet 1.5] …
3derring-do — If a person shows derring do, they show great courage …
4derring-do — index audacity Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …
5derring-do — originally (late 14c.) dorrying don, lit. daring to do, from durring daring, prp. of M.E. durren to dare (see DARE (Cf. dare)) + don, inf. of to do. Misspelled derrynge do 1500s and mistaken for a noun by Spenser, who took it to mean manhood and… …
6derring-do — ► NOUN dated or humorous ▪ action displaying heroic courage. ORIGIN from a 16th century misprint and misinterpretation of the Middle English phrase dorryng do «daring to do» …
7derring-do — [der′iŋ do͞o′] n. [ME derrynge do, durring don, lit., daring to do; misunderstood as abstract n. by Spenser and thence popularized by Scott ( Ivanhoe)] daring action; reckless courage …
8derring-do — [16] Derring do arose from a misunderstanding of the Middle English phrase dorring do, which literally meant ‘daring to do’ (dorren was the Middle English form of dare). In some 16th century editions of medieval authors this was misprinted as… …
9derring-do — [16] Derring do arose from a misunderstanding of the Middle English phrase dorring do, which literally meant ‘daring to do’ (dorren was the Middle English form of dare). In some 16th century editions of medieval authors this was misprinted as… …
10derring do — der|ring do «DEHR ihng DOO», noun, or derring do, daring deeds; heroic daring: »But where in the older picaresque tradition the adventures are feats of physical derring do, here they are adventures of the spirit (Wall Street Journal). ╂[Middle… …