distrustful

[dis-truhst-fuhl]

adjective

1. unable or unwilling to trust; doubtful; suspicious.

   An alert scientist is distrustful of coincidences.

Other Word Forms

• distrustfully adverb
• distrustfulness noun
• predistrustful adjective
• undistrustful adjective
• undistrustfully adverb
• undistrustfulness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of distrustful¹

First recorded in 1585–95; distrust + -ful

Example Sentences

Several students said their affiliation drew hate speech from strangers and distrustful questions from family members and employers.

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People get very distrustful of things that look just silly and manipulative.

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More broadly, voters remain profoundly distrustful of elite institutions, and progressives have dominated most of those institutions for decades.

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"It’s extremely important from a health communications perspective to treat well-founded fears from a place of respect and empathy; that’s the only way marginalized communities — that are rightfully distrustful of the authorities — can be reached."

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This view has no historical support: The framers of the Constitution were deeply distrustful of executive authority.

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Related Words

• cautious 
• doubtful 
• dubious 
• fearful 
• jealous 
• leery 
• mistrustful 
• skeptical 
• suspicious 
• uneasy 
• wary