bravado
/bɹɑˈvɑdoʊ/noun
bravado is spelled B-R-A-V-A-D-O: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,998th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bravado means “A swaggering show of defiance or courage” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bravado is bravados or bravadoes.
How many letters and syllables are in bravado?
| Letters | 7: B-R-A-V-A-D-O |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 36,998th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is bravado?
Bravado appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,998th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce bravado?
- /bɹɑˈvɑdoʊ/
- /bɹəˈvɑdoʊ/
Bravado has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-bravado.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of bravado
- bravados plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bravadoes plural
- bravadoing participle, present
- bravadoed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bravado mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A swaggering show of defiance or courage.
The angry customer stood in the middle of the showroom and voiced his complaints with loud bravado.
- 2
A superficial show of courage.
- 3
obsoleteA swaggerer; a braggart.
verb
- 1
obsoleteTo swagger; to brag.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bravado in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bravade |
| German | Angeberei, Draufgängertum, Gehabe, Getue, Getöse |
| Portuguese | bravata |
| Spanish | bravata, bravura , bravuconada, baladronada |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does bravado come from?
From French bravade (“bragging or boasting”), from Italian bravata, from verb bravare (“brag, boast”), from bravo. Compare bravura.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).