noun · uncountable · rare

moxie

Nerve, spunk, strength of characterNerve, spunk, strength of character.

/ˈmɒksi/

» I admire your moxie.

Meaning

3 senses

(US, informal, uncountable)Nerve, spunk, strength of character.
Mumm
(US, informal, uncountable)Verve.
Tatkraft, Energie
(US, informal, uncountable)Wit, smarts, skill.
Fähigkeit

More definitions

fortitude and determination

Examples

2 sentences

I admire your moxie.
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · CK · C2Open on Tatoeba Report a problem
He's just a small-time thug, but if he had just a little more moxie, he could be a big-time boss.
ruОн просто мелкий жулик, если бы он был чуть более дерзким, то мог бы стать авторитетом. — caponych
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · AlanF_US · C2Open on Tatoeba Report a problem

Translations

4 languages

Deutsch

spirit, courage, force of character:

vigor, energy:

wit, skill, know-how:

Origin

First recorded use in 1930. From the name of an American soft drink Moxie made since 1885

First recorded use in 1930. From the name of an American soft drink Moxie made since 1885 to which advertisement ascribed many beneficial properties directly but also indirectly by using the same name as a patent medicine first manufactured in 1878. The word appears in very many place names in Maine, especially of falls and ponds, as well as the local name of a plant, the moxie-plum, and is perhaps ultimately from an Abenaki word meaning 'dark water' or an Algonquian root maski- meaning 'herbal infusion'.

Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source