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
Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
Some commentators have suggested that had Americans had earlier access to the Zapruder film, the conspiracy culture that metastasized around the killing of JFK and the more generalized distrust of institutions that went along with it may not have been quite so powerful.
—Time, 20 Sep. 2025
Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025
Family distrusts police investigation after shooting Taddese’s family has been distraught since his death, according to Bernard.
—Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 12 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distrust
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Noun
The bigger story is a hiring process built on distrust.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
Some commentators have suggested that had Americans had earlier access to the Zapruder film, the conspiracy culture that metastasized around the killing of JFK and the more generalized distrust of institutions that went along with it may not have been quite so powerful.
—Time, 20 Sep. 2025
Verb
Also take note: In Tucker Carlson and Don Lemon’s cases, more people distrust them than trust them in this year’s survey.
—Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025
Family distrusts police investigation after shooting Taddese’s family has been distraught since his death, according to Bernard.
—Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 12 Sep. 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 29 Sep. 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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