self-confidence

[ self-kon-fi-duhns, self- ]

See synonyms for self-confidence on Thesaurus.com

noun

realistic confidence in one's own judgment, ability, power, etc.
excessive or inflated confidence in one's own judgment, ability, etc.

Origin of self-confidence

First recorded in 1630–40

Also self-as·sur·ance [self-uh-shoor-uhns, self-] /ˈsɛlf əˈʃʊər əns, ˌsɛlf-/ .

Other words for self-confidence

1	assurance, self-possession, self-respect, poise
2	conceit, self-esteem

See synonyms for self-confidence on Thesaurus.com

Other words from self-confidence

self-con·fi·dent, adjective
self-con·fi·dent·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use self-confidence in a sentence

Strong and self-confident middle classes are usually considered to be the most important prerequisite for democracy to work well.
Why Democracy Will Struggle In The Arab World In 2014 | Balint Szlanko | January 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Telling everyone how beautiful and perfect you are actually makes you seem less self-confident, not more.
The Rise of Selfie Pop: Why Songs About Self-Esteem Are All the Rage | Andrew Romano | December 3, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
But now we have a more, uh, self-confident right wing, and consequently we have a new and different calculus.
Romney and the Right-Wing Shakedown | Michael Tomasky | March 20, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Expansive, amused, irresistibly self-confident, self-deprecating.
A Eulogy for Marie Colvin | Katrina Heron | March 14, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
In the June debate in New Hampshire, Michele Bachmann made a splash with her energetic, zesty, self-confident performance.
The Debate Losers: All Eight GOP Candidates | Michael Medved | August 12, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST

Daphne was still erect, self-confident, militant; whereas Madeleine knew herself vanquished—vanquished both in body and soul.
Marriage la mode | Mrs. Humphry Ward
The Secret Service man was very self-confident and very convincing.
Tom Slade with the Colors | Percy K. Fitzhugh
What desperate purpose lurked behind his self-confident mask?
Through the Wall | Cleveland Moffett
I have been,' said James Dutton to me at the last interview I had with him, 'all my life an overweening self-confident fool.
Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, No. 440 | Various
Thereupon, by way of showing what an adept I was in the art of baby tossing, I shot him upward with self-confident impetus.
The Opinions of a Philosopher | Robert Grant

British Dictionary definitions for self-confidence

self-confidence

noun

confidence in one's own powers, judgment, etc

Derived forms of self-confidence

self-confident, adjective
self-confidently, adverb

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

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