Daunting

How to spell daunting

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce daunting

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does daunting mean?

1. adjectiveSeeming so difficult, large, or intimidating that it discourages or worries you.

Daunting in a sentence

• Sorting out the tax paperwork felt daunting until she broke it into smaller steps.

• The new manager faced the daunting task of rebuilding the whole team.

Where does daunting come from?

Language of origin: French

The word daunting grows out of the verb 'daunt', which English took from Old French in the 1200s in forms such as 'danter' or 'donter', meaning to tame, to subdue, or to overpower. That Old French verb descends in turn from the Latin 'domare', which literally meant 'to tame' an animal or 'to break in' a wild creature, the same root that sits behind 'indomitable' (unable to be tamed). Early English use kept this sense of physically subduing or conquering someone, but over the centuries the meaning softened from breaking a body to breaking a spirit, settling on the modern idea of intimidating or discouraging. The present-participle form 'daunting' became an adjective describing anything so large or difficult that it saps your courage before you even begin. A useful spelling cue is the 'au' vowel in 'daunt', which echoes related words like 'jaunt' and 'haunt' rather than the simpler 'aw' you might expect from the sound.

How the word is built

• daunt (from Latin domare: to tame, subdue)
• -ing (adjective suffix)