Definition of confidence
1a : a feeling or consciousness of one's powers or of reliance on one's circumstances had perfect confidence in her ability to succeed met the risk with brash confidenceb : faith or belief that one will act in a right, proper, or effective way have confidence in a leader
2 : the quality or state of being certain : certitude they had every confidence of success
3a : a relation of trust or intimacy took his friend into his confidenceb : reliance on another's discretion Their story was told in strictest confidence.c : support especially in a legislative body vote of confidence
4 : a communication made in confidence : secret accused him of betraying a confidence
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Examples of confidence in a Sentence
The class gave me more confidence.
He lacked the confidence to succeed.
The experience gave her the confidence to start her own business.
Good grades boosted her confidence.
It takes time to build confidence when you are learning a new skill.
They have an air of confidence about them.
She has done little to gain their confidence.
School officials express confidence that the problem will soon be resolved.
Recent Examples of confidence from the Web
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In the lead-up to his past two competitive forays to the Masters at Augusta National, McIlroy has endured an endless loop of questions about his preparedness, his confidence and his putting.
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There’s a confidence in him that seems to come from work ethic and not bravado.
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Congress, by comparison, inspired confidence in just 9 percent.
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And yet, despite the bettors’ confidence, the outcome was extraordinarily unusual, and all but unnoticed.
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Doctors possess political power, professional confidence and a deep aversion to outside scrutiny.
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Moreover, earlier in the year, only 30 percent of Americans polled by Gallup expressed confidence in the honesty of elections in general.
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Just this week, a Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll found that only 22 percent of Americans have confidence in the federal government.
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The Conference Board reported this week that U.S. consumer confidence rose to the highest level in more than nine years last month.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'confidence'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of confidence
see confident
Synonym Discussion of confidence
confidence
Definition of confidence
: of, relating to, or adept at swindling by false promises a confidence game a confidence man
Origin and Etymology of confidence
see confident
CONFIDENCE Defined for English Language Learners
confidence
playDefinition of confidence for English Language Learners
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: a feeling or belief that you can do something well or succeed at something
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: a feeling or belief that someone or something is good or has the ability to succeed at something
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: the feeling of being certain that something will happen or that something is true
CONFIDENCE Defined for Kids
confidence
playDefinition of confidence for Students
1 : a feeling of trust or belief Do you have confidence in your partner?
2 : self-confidence
3 : reliance on another's secrecy or loyalty Remember, I told you that in confidence.
4 : 2secret Don't betray a confidence.
Learn More about confidence
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for confidence Spanish Central: Translation of confidence Nglish: Translation of confidence for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of confidence for Arabic speakers
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