self-possession
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of self-possession
First recorded in 1735–45
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.
But nothing comes across more clearly in “Queen of Chess” than Judit Polgár’s unruffled self-possession.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 5, 2026
The 20-year-old back row has swagger and self-possession, and a side order of skulduggery.
From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2025
It’s given me this facility, and this self-possession.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2024
This self-possession is apparent in one of the six photographs published as part of Detour’s 1995 music issue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2024
“Don’t be a sap,” he gazed with cool self-possession at me, “there isn’t any war.”
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
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.
