disarming
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- disarmingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of disarming
Explanation
When something's disarming, it calms hostility. A disarming smile from you can transform what could have been a tense conversation with an angry neighbor. When you disarm a security system, it won't go off — everything is okay. The same thing happens when you act in a disarming way. A disarming gesture can make people feel less on their guard, like a famous actor whose disarming gesture shows he doesn't take himself so seriously after all. Disarming can also refer to the act of reducing military arms, or weapons.
Vocabulary lists containing disarming
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I've Been to the Mountaintop" (1968)
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This Week in Pop Culture: December 29, 2018 - January 4, 2019
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A Thousand Splendid Suns
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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.
Gosling is typically terrific, but “Project Hail Mary” is practically tailor-made for his brand of disarming allure.
From Salon • Mar. 21, 2026
If Costanzo’s disarming enthusiasm for the role has been significant in mainstreaming “Akhnaten,” Holiday, who is a very different presence, may be the next step.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026
The group has sought to present itself as a responsible security partner and has regularly published Telegram posts about everything from assisting local residents to disarming militants.
From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026
The strategy rests on what Mr Bogad calls the "irresistible image" - often silly, it's a "disarming and charming" display that calls attention to your ideas without obviously explaining them to a viewer.
From BBC • Dec. 27, 2025
But his walk had an energetic, feline spring, and there was a disarming, self-mocking lilt to his voice.
From "The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling" by Maryrose Wood
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.
