Word.ws English Dictionary

diffident

Syllables: dif·fi·dent/ˈdɪfɪdənt/

diffident adjective: lacking confidence in others; distrustful.

Adjective

diffident (comparative more diffident, superlative most diffident)

  1. (archaic) Lacking confidence in others; distrustful.
  2. Lacking self-confidence; timid; modest
    • Having therefore—but hold, as we are diffident of our own abilities, let us here invite a superior power to our assistance.1749, Henry Fielding, chapter VIII, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, book IV
    • Emma is spoiled by being the cleverest of her family. At ten years old, she had the misfortune of being able to answer questions which puzzled her sister at seventeen. She was always quick and assured: Isabella slow and diffident.1815, Jane Austen, Emma, volume I, chapter 5
    Synonyms:
    timid, modest

diffident meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Malayalam and Kannada

diffident in Tamil

தன்னம்பிக்கையற்ற, கூச்சப்படும், தயங்கும்

diffident in Urdu

غیرواثق, مشکوک

diffident in Malayalam

ആത്മവിശ്വാസമില്ലാത്ത, സാശങ്കമായ, ഭീരുത്വമുള്ള

diffident in Kannada

ಆತ್ಮವಿಶ್ವಾಸವಿಲ್ಲದ, ಸಂಕೋಚ ಸ್ವಭಾವದ, ಅಧೈರ್ಯದ, ಸಂಶಯದ

Synonyms of diffident

Forms of diffident

comparativemore diffident
superlativemost diffident

Origin of diffident

From Latin diffīdentem, present participle of diffīdere (“to mistrust”). Doublet of defiant.

Words formed from diffident

Questions about diffident

What does diffident mean?
Diffident means lacking confidence in others; distrustful.
What is diffident in Tamil?
Diffident in Tamil is தன்னம்பிக்கையற்ற, கூச்சப்படும், தயங்கும். See Diffident meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is diffident?
Diffident is an adjective.
How do you pronounce diffident?
Diffident is pronounced /ˈdɪfɪdənt/.

Words near diffident in the dictionary

  1. diffide
  2. diffidence
  3. diffidences
  4. diffidencies
  5. diffidency
  6. diffident
  7. diffidently
  8. diffidentness
  9. Diffie-Hellman
  10. diffine
  11. diffing

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: diffident (page history and authors); diffident (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); diffident (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); diffident (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); diffident (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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