Antonyms for diffident


Grammar : Adj
Spell : dif-i-duhnt
Phonetic Transcription : ˈdɪf ɪ dənt


Definition of diffident

Origin :
  • mid-15c., from Latin diffidentem (nominative diffidens), present participle of diffidere (see diffidence). Related: Diffidently.
  • adj hesitant; unconfident
Example sentences :
  • The diffident took heart before him, and the presumptuous were checked.
  • Extract from : « Heroes of the Telegraph » by J. Munro
  • She spoke with diffident slowness, her gaze fastened upon her plate.
  • Extract from : « The Market-Place » by Harold Frederic
  • The tone of his voice, now soft and diffident, startled Hardy out of his dream.
  • Extract from : « Hidden Water » by Dane Coolidge
  • Barrington was the most diffident of men; his bashfulness amounted to actual pain.
  • Extract from : « Barrington » by Charles James Lever
  • Edith, funny and diffident, now rose and addressed the class.
  • Extract from : « Molly Brown's Senior Days » by Nell Speed
  • But you forget how diffident M. de Bois is, how distrustful of his own merits.
  • Extract from : « Fairy Fingers » by Anna Cora Mowatt Ritchie
  • Denison, in a diffident manner, said that he had not exactly had much.
  • Extract from : « Rdan The Devil And Other Stories » by Louis Becke
  • It was so faint and diffident a knock, no wonder it passed unheeded.
  • Extract from : « The Dop Doctor » by Clotilde Inez Mary Graves
  • I shall say nothing of the miseries which embittered the life of the diffident boy.
  • Extract from : « Apologia Diffidentis » by W. Compton Leith
  • In the matter of avowals the diffident never speak if they can write.
  • Extract from : « Apologia Diffidentis » by W. Compton Leith

Synonyms for diffident

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019