modesty

[mod-uh-stee]

See more synonyms for modesty on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural mod·es·ties.

the quality of being modest; freedom from vanity, boastfulness, etc.
regard for decency of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
simplicity; moderation.

Origin of modesty

From the Latin word modestia, dating back to 1525–35. See modest, -y³

Related formso·ver·mod·est·y, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for modesty

simplicity, reticence, propriety, purity, decency, humility, virtue, diffidence, humbleness, demureness, timidity, quietness, self-effacement, constraint, delicacy, inhibition, meekness, chastity, innocence, celibacy

Examples from the Web for modesty

Contemporary Examples of modesty

Mapei is soft-spoken, but that should not be mistaken for modesty.
The Swedish Queen of Soulful Pop: Mapei Won’t Wait for You to Listen
Caitlin Dickson
October 16, 2014
The very limitations that we understand as modesty are erased by this process.
Reading Prison Novels In Prison
Daniel Genis
May 24, 2014
After Bates died, his successor at the RGS reflected, “I think his modesty was carried to a fault.”
Exploring the Amazon, While We Still Can
Darrell Hartman
May 15, 2014
Then again, my perception of modesty has been skewed ever since Katy Perry shot whip cream out of her bra, so who even knows.
Avril Lavigne’s Dumb ‘Hello Kitty’ Video Is Rife with Cultural Appropriation
Amy Zimmerman
April 25, 2014
Valderrama's modest career is in direct contrast to his flagrant lack of modesty.
Why Women Want Hollywood Lothario Wilmer Valderrama
Amy Zimmerman
April 9, 2014

Historical Examples of modesty

All shall be imputed to that modesty which has ever so much distinguished you.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
There was a modesty in Bowser's tone that gave me a better opinion of him.
The Underdog
F. Hopkinson Smith
She was quite honest, and she served her father's customers with modesty.
The Hunted Outlaw
Anonymous
If you will force my modesty to the confession I believe in my heart that it is a sapphire.
The Incomplete Amorist
E. Nesbit
She sobbed, and with a sudden feeling of modesty freed her wrists from his grasp.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola

British Dictionary definitions for modesty

modesty

noun plural -ties

the quality or condition of being modest
(modifier) designed to prevent inadvertent exposure of part of the bodya modesty flap

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for modesty

1530s, "freedom from exaggeration, self-control," from Middle French modestie or directly from Latin modestia "moderation, sense of honor, correctness of conduct," from modestus "moderate, keeping measure, sober, gentle, temperate," from modus "measure, manner" (see mode (n.1)). Meaning "quality of having a moderate opinion of oneself" is from 1550s; that of "womanly propriety" is from 1560s.

La pudeur donne des plaisirs bien flatteurs à l'amant: elle lui fait sentir quelles lois l'on transgresse pour lui; (Modesty both pleases and flatters a lover, for it lays stress on the laws which are being transgressed for his sake.) [Stendhal "de l'Amour," 1822]