Definition

Adjective: * Shamelessly bold; impudent; showing no shame or embarrassment: Describes a person or their behavior that is openly defiant, disrespectful, or lacking in modesty, often in a way that shocks or offends social norms.

Usage

"Brazen-faced" is a strong, somewhat formal or literary adjective used to describe extreme and open audacity. It implies that the person's lack of shame is so apparent it is visible in their face or demeanor. It is almost always used in a critical or disapproving way.

Examples

• The brazen-faced thief walked out of the store with the merchandise in plain sight.
• After being caught in the lie, she told a brazen-faced story to cover her tracks.
• His brazen-faced demand for a promotion, despite his poor performance, shocked his manager.

Advanced Usage

• The term can be hyphenated ("brazen-faced") or written as two words ("brazen faced"), though the hyphenated form is more common, especially when used attributively before a noun (e.g., "a brazen-faced lie").
• It is often used in conjunction with nouns like "lie," "hypocrisy," "cheat," or "thief" to emphasize the shameless nature of the act.

Variants and Related Words

• Brazen (adj./v.): The root adjective meaning "bold and without shame." Also a verb meaning "to face a situation with defiant boldness" (e.g., ).
• Barefaced (adj.): Shameless and undisguised (e.g., a ). Very similar in meaning and often interchangeable with "brazen-faced."
• Bald-faced (adj.): Another near-synonym meaning blatant and shameless (e.g., ).

Synonyms

• Shameless
• Impudent
• Audacious
• Insolent
• Unabashed
• Brash

Idioms and Phrases

• To be brazen-faced about (something): To act with shameless boldness regarding a specific thing.
  • He was utterly brazen-faced about his plagiarism.
• A brazen-faced lie: A lie told with shocking and obvious shamelessness.
  • The politician's claim was a brazen-faced lie easily disproven by the facts.

Adjective

1. unrestrained by convention or propriety
   • an audacious trick to pull
   • a barefaced hypocrite
   • the most bodacious display of tourism this side of Anaheim- Los Angeles Times
   • bald-faced lies
   • brazen arrogance
   • the modern world with its quick material successes and insolent belief in the boundless possibilities of progress- Bertrand Russell