mistrust

American  

[mis-truhst] / mɪsˈtrʌst /

noun

1. lack of trust or confidence; distrust.

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verb (used with object)

1. to regard with mistrust, suspicion, or doubt; distrust.

2. to surmise.

verb (used without object)

1. to be distrustful.

mistrust British  

/ ˌmɪsˈtrʌst /

verb

1. to have doubts or suspicions about (someone or something)

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noun

1. distrust

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

• mistruster
  noun
• mistrustful
  adjective
• mistrustfully
  adverb
• mistrustfulness
  noun
• mistrustingly
  adverb
• self-mistrust
  noun
• unmistrusted
  adjective
• unmistrusting
  adjective

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.

Example Sentences

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

Regarding the governments in such countries, there is "growing mistrust of their ability to rein in deficits", Kevin Thozet, a market analyst at French investment group Carmignac, told AFP.

From Barron's • May 20, 2026

"Right now the brand of AI has just been trashed and this certainly doesn't help," she said - noting widespread mistrust of the tech, particularly among young people.

From BBC • May 19, 2026

This isn’t the language of benign competition but of strategic rivalry and sober mistrust, softened only slightly by the possibility of “peaceful coexistence.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

As a newcomer Molly had liked the distance her persona created, the wariness and mistrust she saw in the eyes of her peers.

From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline

Related Words

• apprehension
• distrust
• doubt
• fear
• foreboding
• misgiving
• skepticism
• suspicion
• uncertainty
• wariness