spunk

UK: /ˈspʌŋk/ US: /spʌŋk/ ,(spungk)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

spunk /spʌŋk/   n. [uncountable]

1. courage;
   spirit;
   braveness:
   to have the spunk to express an unpopular opinion.

spunk•y, adj., -i•er, -i•est. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

spunk (spungk),  n. 

1. pluck;
   spirit;
   mettle.
2. touchwood, tinder, or punk.

• blend of, blended spark¹ and obsolete funk spark, touchwood (cognate with Dutch vonk, German Funke) 1530–40

spunk′less, adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

spunk / spʌŋk/ noun

1. courage or spirit
2. 
   a vulgar slang word for semen
3. touchwood or tinder, esp originally made from various spongy types of fungus
4. a person, esp male, who is sexually attractive

Etymology: 16th Century (in the sense: a spark): from Scottish Gaelic spong tinder, sponge, from Latin spongia sponge

ˈspunky adjective

ˈspunkily adverb