as in hesitant
slow to begin or proceed with a course of action because of doubts or uncertainty
I'm reluctant to let you borrow my vintage CDs since you never give back anything I lend you
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Recent Examples of reluctant
Graphic novel Swat Man, about a crooked cop turned reluctant superhero, is being adapted to the big screen as an action-comedy.
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Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 29 May 2025
Some of the Broncos’ best teams created fear in the middle of the field, leaving a trail of bug eyes and gator arms from reluctant receivers.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 29 May 2025
While reluctant to leave his family and friends, he’s applied to faculty positions in Canada and France.
—Christina Larson, Los Angeles Times, 25 May 2025
Even if Merz—whose coalition partner, the Social Democrats, is notoriously reluctant to fully commit to defense—can’t keep all of his promises, Germany will be a different kind of military player within a few years.
—Ian Bremmer, Time, 24 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for reluctant
Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 29 May 2025
Some of the Broncos’ best teams created fear in the middle of the field, leaving a trail of bug eyes and gator arms from reluctant receivers.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 29 May 2025
While reluctant to leave his family and friends, he’s applied to faculty positions in Canada and France.
—Christina Larson, Los Angeles Times, 25 May 2025
Even if Merz—whose coalition partner, the Social Democrats, is notoriously reluctant to fully commit to defense—can’t keep all of his promises, Germany will be a different kind of military player within a few years.
—Ian Bremmer, Time, 24 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for reluctant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reluctant
hesitant
Adjective
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But some people may be hesitant about having any of their activities tracked to benefit a multi-trillion-dollar conglomerate.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
1 June 2025
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In the meantime, businesses are left in the murky waters — hesitant to make more or ship more, unsure where to build factories or how high to raise prices.—
Alina Selyukh,
NPR,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reluctant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reluctant. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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