Dauntless (adjective)

Definition

  1. Incapable of being intimidated or subdued: fearless, undaunted

(Ref: Merriam-Webster Online, Word of the day, 20 January 2020)

Use it in a sentence

The boy threw another stone at the yapping dog next door, trying to make him stop, but knowing the neighbour would come charging out any minute. On cue, the back door was flung open and he saw his neighbour’s face. It was contorted in anger, rage. Even at a distance, the boy could see the veins, sea blue, throbbing at his temple, in his forearms, fists clenched.

Perhaps he’d gone too far. But he wanted, needed, that dog to stop barking.

‘Hey!’ Sharp. Voice deep. The neighbour came striding over to glare at him over the low fence. ‘What the fuck are you doing, kid? Why are you pelting stones at my dog?’ He pointed to the long-haired mutt who stared dolefully at him. Silent. Maybe guilty. He’d stopped barking the minute the door opened.

The boy was dauntless in the way that only 10-year-old boys could be. ‘He barks too much.’

The neighbour eyeballed him. ‘He bloody well does not. And even if he did, you can’t just throw stones at him’.

‘The barking makes my mum cry.’

‘What?’

‘Mum’s sick. The barking makes her cry.’

The neighbours face suddenly softened, and he unclenched his fists. In a slightly less gruff voice, he asked, ‘What’s wrong with her?’

The boy didn’t answer.

The neighbour lingered for a moment. ‘Listen, sorry about your mum. But,’ he said, jabbing a finger at the boy, ‘stop throwing stones.’ He turned and whistled sharply for the dog who went bounding inside after him.

The boy turned to go inside too, satisfied.

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