Diffident \Dif"fi*dent\, a. [L. diffidens, -entis, p. pr. of
diffidere; dif- = dis + fidere to trust; akin to fides faith.
See Faith, and cf. Defy.]
1. Wanting confidence in others; distrustful. [Archaic]
[1913 Webster]
You were always extremely diffident of their
success. --Melmoth.
[1913 Webster]
2. Wanting confidence in one's self; distrustful of one's own
powers; not self-reliant; timid; modest; bashful;
characterized by modest reserve.
[1913 Webster]
The diffident maidens,
Folding their hands in prayer. --Longfellow.
Syn: Distrustful; suspicious; hesitating; doubtful; modest;
bashful; lowly; reserved.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
diffident
adj 1: showing modest reserve; "she was diffident when offering a
comment on the professor's lecture"
2: lacking self-confidence; "stood in the doorway diffident and
abashed"; "problems that call for bold not timid
responses"; "a very unsure young man" [syn: shy, timid,
unsure]
WordNet (r) 2.0
58 Moby Thesaurus words for "diffident":
bashful, boggling, cautious, cowardly, coy, demure, demurring,
deprecative, deprecatory, faltering, fearful, fearing, fearsome,
goosy, hesitant, hesitating, in fear, jibbing, jumpy, modest,
mousy, nervous, qualmish, rabbity, reluctant, retiring, scary,
scrupling, scrupulous, self-deprecating, self-depreciating,
self-depreciative, self-distrustful, self-doubting, self-effacing,
shaky, shilly-shallying, shivery, shrinking, shy, skittery,
skittish, squeamish, startlish, sticking, stickling, straining,
tentative, timid, timorous, trembling, tremulous, trepidant,
trigger-happy, unassertive, unassured, unselfconfident,
unselfreliant
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
shy, timid, unsure
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