modest
Americanadjective
-
having or showing a moderate or humble estimate of one's merits, importance, etc.; free from vanity, egotism, boastfulness, or great pretensions.
- Synonyms:
- unobtrusive, unpretentious, unassuming, retiring
-
free from ostentation or showy extravagance.
a modest house.
- Synonyms:
- unobtrusive, unpretentious
-
having or showing regard for the decencies of behavior, speech, dress, etc.; decent.
a modest neckline on a dress.
-
limited or moderate in amount, extent, etc..
a modest increase in salary.
adjective
-
having or expressing a humble opinion of oneself or one's accomplishments or abilities
-
reserved or shy
modest behaviour
-
not ostentatious or pretentious
-
not extreme or excessive; moderate
-
decorous or decent
Related Words
Modest, demure, prudish imply conformity to propriety and decorum, and a distaste for anything coarse or loud. Modest implies a becoming shyness, sobriety, and proper behavior: a modest, self-respecting person. Demure implies a bashful, quiet simplicity, staidness, and decorum; but can also indicate an assumed or affected modesty: a demure young chorus girl. Prudish suggests an exaggeratedly self-conscious modesty or propriety in behavior or conversation of one who wishes to be thought of as easily shocked and who often is intolerant: a prudish objection to a harmless remark.
Other Word Forms
- hypermodest adjective
- hypermodestness noun
- modestly adverb
- overmodest adjective
- pseudomodest adjective
- quasi-modest adjective
- supermodest adjective
- unmodest adjective
Etymology
Origin of modest
First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin modestus “restrained, decorous,” equivalent to modes- (stem of unattested modus, an s- stem akin to modus “measured amount, limit, manner” ( mode 1 ), perhaps from unattested medos, with the vowel of modus; compare moderārī “to moderate” ( moderate, from the same noun stem) + -tus adjective suffix
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.
Apple’s spending growth is modest in comparison with what is being spent to fill up AI data centers, even though it is breaking records with huge sales of the iPhone 17.
This reduction would lead to modest but meaningful decreases in blood pressure across the population.
From Science Daily
Consisting of a couple of weatherboard buildings, a general store, a caravan park and a petrol station grouped around a modest main street, Licola is one of Australia's smallest towns.
From BBC
“As flows started to reverse and markets rationalized, those spectacular numbers fell into more modest territory. Then the 2022 bear market hit,” Bespoke added, noting that many investors were now stuck with “deeply underwater positions.”
From Barron's
Like the rest of Big Tech, the company will be judged on its AI prowess, even though Apple’s investments have been relatively modest with $12 billion in capex over the past 12 months.
From Barron's
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.
