modesty

noun mod·es·ty \ ˈmä-də-stē \

|Updated on: 17 Jul 2018

Examples: modesty in a Sentence

1 : the quality of not being too proud or confident about yourself or your abilities

She accepted the award with modesty.

2 : propriety in dress, speech, or conduct

The young man was known for his modesty.

See modesty defined for English-language learners

See modesty defined for kids

Examples of modesty in a Sentence

She accepted the award with modesty.
He is known for his modesty, an uncommon characteristic for a politician.
There was no false modesty in her victory speech.
the modesty of her clothing

Recent Examples of modesty from the Web

That modesty is typical of the Chinese food world, where there’s a big difference between the gourmets (culinary scholars who propose recipes) and the cooks (the guys who actually execute those recipes).

— casey quackenbush / hong kong, Time, "'We're Not Educated.' The Untold Story of Lung King Heen, the World's First Michelin Three-Star Chinese Restaurant," 12 July 2018
Followers of Islam believe fasting teaches patience, modesty, and spirituality.

— michael gordon, charlotteobserver, "A Mecklenburg inmate signed up for Ramadan fast. Now he's suing because he got hungry.," 5 July 2018
The idea that modesty can be a secular and feminist option, an individual’s woman’s choice to show less rather than more an act of empowerment, has been anathema.

— rafia zakaria, The New Republic, "The Feminist Future of Modesty," 12 June 2018
Whether Markle’s choice will influence upcoming bridal trends remains to be seen but one can likely expect to see more options inspired by the gown’s modesty.

— tony bravo, San Francisco Chronicle, "Meghan Markle weds Prince Harry in modest yet modern Givenchy gown," 19 May 2018
The modesty is deceptive, though, for these same two programs encompass a nearly new knockout, a major revival and the kind of career-spanning variety that other companies save for big anniversary events.

— brian seibert, New York Times, "Review: Mark Morris’s Egalitarian Ethos and Top-Class Art," 27 Apr. 2018
From then on in financial centers nationwide, modesty has been the safer approach to dressing.

— jacob gallagher, WSJ, "How to Dress Like a Billionaire," 23 Apr. 2018
Both Kate and Meghan have occasionally crossed their legs at events before, but the main concern here is modesty.

— caroline picard, Good Housekeeping, "Quiz: How Much Do You Really Know About Royal Protocol?," 26 June 2018
Beyond all of that, the move to cover up and speak up also points to the comeback of modesty, a concept that was until now rarely taken seriously by feminists.

— rafia zakaria, The New Republic, "The Feminist Future of Modesty," 12 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'modesty.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of modesty

1531

in the meaning defined at sense 2

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modesty Synonyms

MODESTY Defined for English Language Learners

modesty

noun

: the quality of not being too proud or confident about yourself or your abilities
: the quality of behaving and especially dressing in ways that do not attract sexual attention