distrust
Americanverb (used with object)
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distrusts,
present (3rd person singular)
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distrusted,
past participle, past
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distrusting
present participle
noun
verb
noun
Usage
What’s the difference between distrust and mistrust? As nouns, distrust and mistrust mean just about the same thing: doubt or suspicion—a lack of trust. As verbs, they are also often used interchangeably to mean to regard someone with suspicion—to not trust them. Some people think that there is a subtle difference in what each word implies. Distrust, they say, implies that there is a strong reason for the lack of trust—that it’s based on something that a person has already done. Mistrust, on the other hand, is said to be based on suspicion, as opposed to having a basis in someone’s past actions. This may be what some people intend to imply when they use each word, but, still, most people use the two of them in just about the same way. Distrust is the more commonly used of the two. The adjective distrustful is also more common than mistrustful. Here are some examples of distrust and mistrust used correctly in a sentence. In both cases, the other word could be swapped in without changing the meaning. Example: I have a deep mistrust of landlords. Example: She has distrusted me ever since I lost her book—and I think her distrust of me has grown since then. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between distrust and mistrust.
Synonym Usage
See suspicion.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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distrustsimple
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distrustssimple
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have distrustedperfect
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has distrustedperfect
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am distrustingprogressive
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are distrustingprogressive
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is distrustingprogressive
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have been distrustingperfect progressive
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has been distrustingperfect progressive
Past
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distrustedsimple
-
had distrustedperfect
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was distrustingprogressive
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were distrustingprogressive
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had been distrustingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of distrust
Explanation
Distrust is a feeling of doubt about some person or thing. We distrust people who aren't honest. When you trust someone, you believe in her, so the opposite is true of distrust. Trust is from the Old Norse word traust meaning "confidence." Put a dis in front of it, and to distrust is to have no confidence in someone or something. As a noun, distrust is the feeling of doubt. In a corrupt workplace, there will be a lot of distrust. Where there's distrust, there's not much harmony.
Vocabulary lists containing distrust
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.
See Examples For:
The dangers are mounting outside and distrust simmers within.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Finally, amid growing distrust of the police and the government, firearm sales began to increase during 2015 and 2016, setting an all-time record in 2020.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
"Such imagery and misinformation only serve to widen the distrust between the Philippines and China," it added.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Given his parents’ distrust of the stock market, his choice of job wasn’t obvious.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
After the invention of the fact, testimony could be approached with a form of systematized distrust.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
One community member distrusts dialogue to begin with, calling it a means to “give up something.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 9, 2026
He is devoutly religious with a deep libertarian streak, an establishmentarian who distrusts most of today’s establishments, and a traditionalist who is skeptical of the world’s oldest currency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
In Ukraine, where polls consistently show that about 95% of the population distrusts Putin, there is a uneasy mix of deep scepticism about the talks and deep fatigue with the war.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2025
The team predicted that if robots can move alongside humans in a synchronised way it would build trust -- and conversely, that if a user distrusts a robot, the co-movement will be disrupted.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 20, 2024
He distrusts everyone, she reflected, and perhaps for good reason.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Greenspan was considered a “maestro” who read the economy by feel and distrusted mechanical rules.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
David embraced aristocratic country life and distrusted outsiders; Sydney enjoyed London, music and company.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
Frost told the high court she distrusted friends at the time but now "100%" believes that stories about her were obtained by hacking her voicemails.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2026
After more than a decade of Nazi ascendance, the party and the barons who would bail them out still distrusted one another.
From Salon ● Apr. 5, 2025
Evil had been seen and heard there, sorrow had been known; the Elves feared and distrusted the world outside: wolves were howling on the wood’s borders: but on the land of Lórien no shadow lay.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
They’re initially suspicious and distrusting of each other.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2026
As a colleague he could be distrusting and wary.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 28, 2025
But distrusting the Fed and abandoning the dollar are completely different moves.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2025
Initially distrusting of him, Bailey eventually finds him to be a kind of mentor and protector, which gives her a new perspective on life.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2024
Like she was sad that her son seemed so angry, so distrusting.
From "All American Boys" by Jason Reynolds
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.
