spunky
Other forms: spunkily
A spunky person is someone who's high spirited and brave. The hero of a fairy tale is often described as spunky.
It takes a spunky traveler to cheerfully find her way across a busy city without a map, and a spunky kindergartner might march bravely into school on the first day. Someone who's spunky isn't just courageous — there's an implied pep or eagerness to the word as well. The word spunky comes from the 1530's Scottish meaning of spunk, "a spark," which is rooted in the Gaelic word spong, "tinder, pith, or sponge."
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showing courage
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willing to face dangerbrave, courageouspossessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
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Vocabulary lists containing spunky
Here we present 15 words that passed through Gaelic on their way to English. Some are stereotypically Gaelic, like bog and clan, but others, like loop and curmudgeon, may surprise you. You can read more about words from the Emerald Isle in Beyond Shamrocks and Leprechauns.
Author Beverly Cleary turns 100 years old on April 12, 2016. Cleary's books are all about kids, but they are more specifically about what it feels like to be a kid -- especially what it feels like to grow up, awkward and confused about the world around you. One of the things that is special about the adventures of Cleary's creations -- like Ramona Quimby, and Beezus, and Ralph S. Mouse -- is that there are no real lessons in these books, no author's voice giving a lecture, and yet eventually, things get a little clearer and less awkward for the characters. And for the reader, too. Here are 10 vocabulary words drawn from Beverly Cleary talking about her life and her work.