distrusted; distrusting; distrusts
: to have no trust or confidence in
Examples of distrust in a Sentence
Noun
He has a distrust of doctors.
the psychic's bold claims were greeted with distrust and outright scorn
Verb
She's always distrusted their promises.
we instinctively distrust those phone calls that tell us we have won a free vacation or car
Recent Examples on the Web
Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 12 Nov. 2025
Green shows how federal strategy has weaponized this distrust by building on a feeling, already possessed by much of the public, that universities are not public partners but misbehaving contractors.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
Kristine Phillips, IndyStar, 9 Nov. 2025
The events occurred in and around the lawless border of Venezuela and Colombia, where spies, smugglers and gun runners rub shoulders and distrust their own shadow.
—Kevin G. Hall, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distrust
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Noun
Leaders in the lower chamber have a smaller majority and must also contend with a wider range of opinions, a bigger flock of fiscal hawks, and their members’ more pervasive distrust of Obamacare.
—Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 12 Nov. 2025
Green shows how federal strategy has weaponized this distrust by building on a feeling, already possessed by much of the public, that universities are not public partners but misbehaving contractors.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
Verb
Publishing a story based on a handful of unnamed sources is simply asking too much of a public that already distrusts the media.
—Kristine Phillips, IndyStar, 9 Nov. 2025
The events occurred in and around the lawless border of Venezuela and Colombia, where spies, smugglers and gun runners rub shoulders and distrust their own shadow.
—Kevin G. Hall, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distrust
Cite this Entry
“Distrust.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distrust. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
distrust
1 of 2 verb
dis·trust
(ˈ)dis-ˈtrəst 
: to have no trust or confidence in
distrust
2 of 2 noun
: a lack of trust or confidence
distrustful
adjective
-fəl
distrustfully
adverb
-fə-lē
distrustfulness
noun
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