as in unwillingness
a lack of willingness or desire to do or accept something
the mice showed an odd reluctance to eat the cheese we had put out for them
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reluctance
Men’s reluctance to leave unhappy marriages is rarely about one factor.
—
Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 19 Apr. 2025
Denver Public Schools’ Board of Education is considering requiring a pause of at least three years between rounds of school closures, reflecting members’ reluctance to shutter classrooms amid falling K-12 public school enrollment.
—Jessica Seaman, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2025
The findings suggest a sudden reluctance to visit the U.S. isn't a purely Canadian phenomenon and should sound alarm bells for the country's $1 trillion-plus travel industry.
—Alex Fitzpatrick, Axios, 4 Apr. 2025
Indeed, behind all of this is the administration's reluctance to support Ukraine, which allies might see as applying to themselves, and China might see as applying to Taiwan.
—Matt Robison, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reluctance
Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 19 Apr. 2025
Denver Public Schools’ Board of Education is considering requiring a pause of at least three years between rounds of school closures, reflecting members’ reluctance to shutter classrooms amid falling K-12 public school enrollment.
—Jessica Seaman, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2025
The findings suggest a sudden reluctance to visit the U.S. isn't a purely Canadian phenomenon and should sound alarm bells for the country's $1 trillion-plus travel industry.
—Alex Fitzpatrick, Axios, 4 Apr. 2025
Indeed, behind all of this is the administration's reluctance to support Ukraine, which allies might see as applying to themselves, and China might see as applying to Taiwan.
—Matt Robison, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reluctance
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reluctance
Noun
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Some critics have blamed the arguments Kennedy has advanced for increasing hesitancy to get vaccines and allowing the disease to spread to its current outbreak, causing the first deaths from the disease since 2015.—
Julia Mueller,
The Hill,
1 May 2025
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Pitching owners to invest in an unproven concept is often met with hesitancy.—
Jordan Valinsky,
CNN Money,
8 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The city’s reticence, per the emails, centered around its request to view the records of antisemitic incidents in Boston that were referenced in Terrell’s letter to Wu.—
Gayla Cawley,
Boston Herald,
22 Apr. 2025
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The reticence from Goldman was particularly jarring given that last week several major Wall Street chieftains, including Jamie Dimon, head of JPMorgan Chase, and BlackRock’s Larry Fink, were more direct in their assessment of the turmoil.—
Rob Copeland,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The war plans group chat uncovered by a journalist at The Atlantic exposed some daylight between Vice President Vance and others in the administration, showing Vance’s hesitance about launching a military strike that President Trump has hailed this week as necessary and successful.—
Alex Gangitano,
The Hill,
29 Mar. 2025
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This often shows up in subtle ways: a reluctance to apply for promotions, a hesitance to speak up in high-stakes meetings, or discomfort in presenting a polished resume or LinkedIn profile.—
Amanda Miller Littlejohn,
Forbes.com,
26 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Madrid were already having doubts about Alaba’s future even before his latest knee operation, as his entourage is aware.—
Mario Cortegana,
New York Times,
3 May 2025
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Read’s lawyers continued their strategy of pointing out inconsistencies between testimony given by the prosecutors’ witnesses with an aim of sowing doubt about their testimony overall.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
3 May 2025
Noun
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Its weakness is an intermittent lack of vulnerability and an occasional disinclination to leave all of that behind and pull out individual characters who have figured out that their travails flow from the difficulty of stopping American family life from turning into a Sam Shepard play.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Feb. 2025
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On the contrary, these works form a trail of historical and imagined personalities, full of desires and disinclinations that misalign.—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
The Atlantic,
19 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Part of the hesitation expressed by business centers on understanding how the tariffs will affect consumers’ view of the economy.—
Alex Harring,
CNBC,
9 May 2025
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As the fintech industry recalibrates—shifting from growth-at-all-costs to sustainable, focused models—leaders like Ferris are proving that clarity beats chaos, and conviction beats hesitation.—
Nicole Casperson,
Forbes.com,
9 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reluctance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reluctance. Accessed 13 May. 2025.
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