embolden

Etymology

Formed from bold (adjective) with em- -en, a variant of the en- -en circumfix that forms transitive verbs denoting an increase in, or intensification of, the quality named. Compare Middle English embolden, enbolden ("to make bold, encourage") — with the modern English forms embold, enbold, imbold now obsolete — and inboldysshen ("to embolden, encourage").