1 distrustful | Definition of distrustful

distrustful

adjective
dis·​trust·​ful | \ (ËŒ)dis-ˈtrÉ™s(t)-fÉ™l How to pronounce distrustful (audio) \

Definition of distrustful

: having or showing distrust

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Other Words from distrustful

distrustfully \ (ËŒ)dis-​ˈtrÉ™s(t)-​fÉ™-​lÄ“ How to pronounce distrustfully (audio) \ adverb
distrustfulness noun

Examples of distrustful in a Sentence

she was distrustful of her boyfriend's claim of having saved the kitten from a raging fire naturally distrustful of politicians who claim to have all the answers

Recent Examples on the Web

Athletes usually want to seek as many opinions as possible on a malady, and some are inherently distrustful of team medical staffs. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, "Gronk has a good point: Athletes should be allowed to use CBD," 28 Aug. 2019 Trump has been adept at exploiting the tension between progressive activists, who are inherently distrustful of Israel, and national Democratic politicians, who are not. Michael J. Koplow, The New Republic, "Israel’s Decision to Ban U.S. Congresswomen Is Self-Defeating," 15 Aug. 2019 Residents of eastern Congo, many of them traumatized refugees from wars and genocides in the region, are deeply distrustful of the government in the capital, Kinshasa. New York Times, "A Cure for Ebola? Two New Treatments Prove Highly Effective in Congo," 12 Aug. 2019 During trial, Levi invoked the death of Freddie Gray and the rogue Gun Trace Task Force, betting jurors would be distrustful of police testimony in this climate after the Baltimore police scandals. Tim Prudente, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore jury finds Keith Davis Jr. guilty in contentious fourth murder trial," 26 July 2019 The attack had made her cautious of her surroundings and distrustful of people, diminishing her desire to explore the world on her own as a missionary nurse. Emanuella Grinberg, CNN, "A former UK officer was convicted of rape on a Tinder date, but his victim says trauma is a 'life sentence'," 13 July 2019 The surveillance has severely interfered with her ability to minister to migrant and refugee communities who have fled violence and corruption and are distrustful of the government, according to the lawsuit. San Diego Union-Tribune, "Pastor sues DHS over government surveillance program targeting migrant advocates," 9 July 2019 The Mad King became paranoid and distrustful, particularly of his Hand. Kayleigh Roberts, Marie Claire, "Every Clue That Daenerys Targaryen Was Always Destined to Become the Mad Queen in 'Game of Thrones'," 13 May 2019 Painfully insecure, fearful of flying and perennially distrustful of those surrounding her, Ms. Franklin never let her psychological challenges overtake her performances. Marc Myers, WSJ, "Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, Dies," 16 Aug. 2018

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

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First Known Use of distrustful

1589, in the meaning defined above

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More from Merriam-Webster on distrustful

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with distrustful

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for distrustful

Spanish Central: Translation of distrustful

Nglish: Translation of distrustful for Spanish Speakers