overconfidence

[oh-ver-kon-fi-duhns]

noun

1. the quality of having an unrealistically high opinion of one’s own judgment, ability, powers, etc..

   Underestimating the enemy can induce laziness and encourage overconfidence.

   Psychologists have determined that overconfidence causes people to overestimate their ability to control events and underestimate risks.

Word History and Origins

Origin of overconfidence¹

over- ( def. ) + confidence ( def. )

Example Sentences

The episode taught him to take profits and avoid overconfidence.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

That success, however, may have bred the overconfidence behind Beijing’s latest sweeping controls on rare earths.

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The main pluses humans have going for them are their overconfidence and yearning to manipulate anything and anyone they can for their own ends.

Read more on Salon

When he’s in the safe space of right-wing media, Patel conducts himself with a brash overconfidence.

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After reviewing the recreation of the photo — the architects are still smiling this time, but their scrappy overconfidence feels eons away — Pildas wonders who the next generation will be, and how they will rise.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• cockiness 
• disrespect