as in shy
not comfortable around people
for someone who makes a living performing for other people, the actress is remarkably diffident in real life
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Recent Examples of diffident
Having travelled to Rome, Fuller struck up a romance with a skinny, diffident twenty-six-year-old named Giovanni Angelo Ossoli.
—
James Marcus, New Yorker, 2 June 2025
Its complacency was personified by the Gandhi family, whose members dominated the Party but appeared diffident and out of touch.
—Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
Only a monumental defeat could stop South Africa qualifying for the semifinals so there was a rather diffident air to proceedings.
—Tim Ellis, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025
In 2022, Quan starred as Waymond Wang, a seemingly diffident husband who transforms into a martial arts expert when crossing multiverses to save his family in the Daniels’ wild and emotional film Everything Everywhere All at Once.
—Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 4 Feb. 2025
Consider Chatterton’s Fields of This, an exemplary case study, as the hazy slacker rock the Oxnard, California, duo of guitarist-keyboardist Brock Pierce and multi-instrumentalist Logan Scrivner dream up is brash yet diffident.
—Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2024
In the light of Rifkin’s diffident anguish, the heartfelt whimsy of these scenes plays like Allen’s own nostalgic reminiscence of his early, funny stuff—and of the way that his life used to be.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2024
Watching an early appearance of Melanie on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson only left me more intrigued about her ambivalent relationship toward fame: How could the same person be so confident and charismatic behind a guitar, but so diffident and uncomfortable chatting with Carson?
—Joseph Fenity, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Jan. 2024
Many Israelis are critical of his fractious handling of the country before the Oct. 7 attack and resent his diffident treatment of the families of hostages held in Gaza.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 22 Jan. 2024
James Marcus, New Yorker, 2 June 2025
Its complacency was personified by the Gandhi family, whose members dominated the Party but appeared diffident and out of touch.
—Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
Only a monumental defeat could stop South Africa qualifying for the semifinals so there was a rather diffident air to proceedings.
—Tim Ellis, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025
In 2022, Quan starred as Waymond Wang, a seemingly diffident husband who transforms into a martial arts expert when crossing multiverses to save his family in the Daniels’ wild and emotional film Everything Everywhere All at Once.
—Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 4 Feb. 2025
Consider Chatterton’s Fields of This, an exemplary case study, as the hazy slacker rock the Oxnard, California, duo of guitarist-keyboardist Brock Pierce and multi-instrumentalist Logan Scrivner dream up is brash yet diffident.
—Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2024
In the light of Rifkin’s diffident anguish, the heartfelt whimsy of these scenes plays like Allen’s own nostalgic reminiscence of his early, funny stuff—and of the way that his life used to be.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2024
Watching an early appearance of Melanie on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson only left me more intrigued about her ambivalent relationship toward fame: How could the same person be so confident and charismatic behind a guitar, but so diffident and uncomfortable chatting with Carson?
—Joseph Fenity, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Jan. 2024
Many Israelis are critical of his fractious handling of the country before the Oct. 7 attack and resent his diffident treatment of the families of hostages held in Gaza.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 22 Jan. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for diffident
Adjective
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The mogul has never been shy about expressing his ambitions.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
2 June 2025
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Instead of crunch, there’s an intense smoke flavor that’s just shy of overpowering, and a denseness similar to ham.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
2 June 2025
Adjective
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For children, especially, these stressors can quickly lead to meltdowns or withdrawn behavior.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
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My main criticism is its withdrawn camera, which is set too far away from the action in most stages.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Cher was bashful to be busted but then couldn’t help laughing out loud at the audacity.—
Brie Stimson,
FOXNews.com,
3 Apr. 2025
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Or maybe the movie’s stars are just feeling a bit bashful!—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
11 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Diffident.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/diffident. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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