confident

[kon-fi-duhnt]

adjective

1. having strong belief or full assurance; sure.

   confident of fulfillment.

   Synonyms: positive, certain

2. sure of oneself; having no uncertainty about one's own abilities, correctness, successfulness, etc.; self-confident; bold.

   a confident speaker.

   Synonyms: intrepid, assured, self-reliant
   Antonyms: diffident, modest

3. excessively bold; presumptuous.

4. Obsolete.,  trustful or confiding.

noun

1. a confidant.

confident

/ ˈkɒnfɪdənt /

adjective

1. having or showing confidence or certainty; sure

   confident of success

2. sure of oneself; bold

3. presumptuous; excessively bold

Other Word Forms

• confidently adverb
• hyperconfident adjective
• hyperconfidently adverb
• nonconfident adjective
• nonconfidently adverb
• quasi-confident adjective
• quasi-confidently adverb
• superconfident adjective
• superconfidently adverb
• ultraconfident adjective
• unconfident adjective
• unconfidently adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of confident¹

First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin confīdent- (stem of confīdēns ), present participle of confīdere. See confide, -ent

Word History and Origins

Origin of confident¹

C16: from Latin confīdens trusting, having self-confidence, from confīdere to have complete trust in; see _confide

Example Sentences

She's the youngest member of our team and, though the nerves have set in, we all feel confident to carry on.

From BBC

"It could have been any one of us - all of us used this kind of transport and we felt very confident in it," said Tania, another worker at the charity.

From BBC

"If we do this, I'm confident that we can balance our budget by the end of this financial year."

From BBC

Longfellow ended his poem on a confident note, declaring that, “borne on the night-wind of the Past, through all our history, to the last,” Americans would “waken and listen” to Revere’s “midnight message.”

From Salon

Meinir said she had become a "completely different child and a lot more confident".

From BBC

Related Words

• assured 
• certain 
• convinced 
• positive 
• sure 

When To Use

What are other ways to say confident?

The adjective confident means “having strong belief or full assurance.” How does confident compare to synonyms certain, sure, and positive? Find out on Thesaurus.com.