diffidently
Americanadverb
-
in a way that shows lack of confidence in one’s own ability, worth, or fitness; timidly or shyly.
He saw her approaching rather diffidently, trying to summon up her courage, smiling an uncertain smile.
-
in a restrained or reserved way.
He got them to do the right thing not by scolding or nagging, but by calmly and diffidently laying out the logic of his position.
Other Word Forms
- nondiffidently adverb
- undiffidently adverb
Etymology
Origin of diffidently
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Well,” he began diffidently, “essentially I’m a writer.”
But her almost diffidently named “Good Hang” pole-vaulted her to the top of the podcast charts.
She sings about love, almost diffidently, amid sustained swells of brasses and strings. an electronic drumbeat and some echoing trumpet calls raise tensions, only to dissolve them in the undulating warmth of Carm’s orchestrations.
From New York Times
Yes, we were responding to anonymous prompts, but we were looking, respectfully and diffidently, at a fellow human being.
From Los Angeles Times
Connery answers diffidently: “A little. It’s throwing the gyroscopic controls of a guided missile off balance with a … a radio beam or something, isn’t it?”
From New York Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
