mistrust
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
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to regard with mistrust, suspicion, or doubt; distrust.
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to surmise.
verb (used without object)
verb
noun
Usage
What’s the difference between mistrust and distrust? As nouns, mistrust and distrust 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 mistrust and distrust 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 mistrust and distrust.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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mistrusternoun
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mistrustfulnessnoun
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self-mistrustnoun
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mistrustfuladjective
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unmistrustedadjective
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unmistrustingadjective
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mistrustfullyadverb
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mistrustinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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mistrustsimple
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mistrustssimple
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have mistrustedperfect
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has mistrustedperfect
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am mistrustingprogressive
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are mistrustingprogressive
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is mistrustingprogressive
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have been mistrustingperfect progressive
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has been mistrustingperfect progressive
Past
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mistrustedsimple
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had mistrustedperfect
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was mistrustingprogressive
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were mistrustingprogressive
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had been mistrustingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mistrust
1350–1400; Middle English mistrusten (v.), mistrust (noun). See mis- 1, trust
Explanation
To mistrust is to feel uneasy about someone or something. If you mistrust bus drivers, you may decide to walk instead. Are you suspicious of clowns in general? Then you mistrust them. This verb has a very similar meaning to distrust — as nouns, both words mean "a lack of trust." A subtle difference between the two is that distrust tends to be based on a bad experience (if a clown once pinched you, you will probably always distrust that clown). Mistrust, on the other hand, is a more general sense of suspicion.
Vocabulary lists containing mistrust
"Thank You, M'am"
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mis-
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mis-
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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.
“There is a great deal of mistrust in L.A. city government right now.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2026
Maryam Yaqub is the AI lead at the Fawcett Society and said women and men had differing opinions on AI, with women expressing some "mistrust".
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026
Such is the mistrust that in some cases "we are now seeing companies borrowing more cheaply than countries," he added.
From Barron's • May 20, 2026
A string of high-profile layoff announcements in which executives have attributed steep job cuts to AI have furthered Americans’ mistrust of the technology.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
Usually they cruise the streets slowly, their eyes hard and heavy with mistrust.
From "A Step from Heaven" by An Na
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.
