Word family noun confidence confidant confidentiality adjective confident confidential verb confide adverb confidently confidentially
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishconfidencecon‧fi‧dence /ˈkɒnfɪdəns $ ˈkɑːn-/ ●●● S2 W2 noun 1 feeling somebody/something is good [uncountable]TRUST the feeling that you can trust someone or something to be good, work well, or produce good resultsconfidence in Public confidence in the government is at an all-time low. She had complete confidence in the doctors. Opinion polls show that voters have lost confidence in the administration.2 belief in yourself [uncountable]CONFIDENT the belief that you have the ability to do things well or deal with situations successfullyconfidence in I didn’t have any confidence in myself.confidence to do something Good training will give a beginner the confidence to enjoy skiing. I felt I was doing well and my confidence began to grow.with confidence Our goal is to prepare students to go into the business world with confidence.3 feeling something is true [uncountable]BELIEVE the feeling that something is definite or truesay/speak/predict etc with confidence How can anyone say with confidence that the recession is over?confidence in I have complete confidence in Mr Wright’s analysis of the situation.have confidence (that) I have every confidence that the job will be completed satisfactorily on time.4 keep information secret [uncountable] if you tell someone something in confidence, you tell them something on the understanding that they will not tell anyone else → confidein confidence I’ll tell you about Moira – in confidence, of course.in strict/the strictest confidence Any information given during the interview will be treated in the strictest confidence.breach of confidence (=when someone tells someone something that they were told in confidence) Lawyers are satisfied that no breach of confidence took place.5 → take somebody into your confidence6 a secret [countable]SECRET a secret or a piece of information that is private or personalshare/exchange confidences They spent their evenings drinking wine and sharing confidences. I have never betrayed a confidence. → vote of confidence, vote of no confidenceCOLLOCATIONS – Meaning 1: the feeling that you can trust someone or something to be good, work well, or produce good resultsverbshave confidence in somebody/somethingThe people no longer have any confidence in their government.lose confidence in somebody/somethingEmployees are losing confidence in the company.gain/win somebody’s confidenceAs team captain, he soon won the confidence of the players.inspire confidence (=make people have confidence)Our education system should inspire public confidence.restore confidence (=make people have confidence again)Interest rate reductions would restore business confidence.boost confidence (=make people have more confidence)The government is keen to boost consumer confidence and spending.shake somebody’s confidence (=make them have less confidence)The stock market fall has shaken the confidence of investors.undermine/damage/weaken somebody’s confidence (=make someone have less confidence)The situation in the US was undermining foreign confidence in the dollar.destroy/shatter confidence in somebody/somethingA further crisis has destroyed public confidence in the bank.phraseshave every/complete/absolute confidence in somebody/somethingA manager must be able to have complete confidence in his staff.a lack of confidencethe public’s lack of confidence in the National Health Servicea crisis of confidence (=a situation in which people no longer trust a government, system etc)the crisis of confidence over food safetyADJECTIVES/NOUN + confidencepublic confidenceThe changes should improve public confidence in the system.consumer confidence (=that ordinary people have when the economic situation is good)Consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest for two years.business confidence (=that businesses have when the economic situation is good)The region has gained 46,000 jobs and business confidence is high.investor confidence (=that investors have when the economic situation is good)A fall in the value of shares damages investor confidence. THESAURUSconfidence the feeling that you have the ability to do things well, and to not make mistakes or be nervous in new situationsYou need patience and confidence to be a good teacher. | have the confidence to do something‘We have the confidence to beat Brazil, ’ said Sampson.After the accident it took a long time before she had the confidence to get back in a car again. | full of confidence (=very confident)I went into the test full of confidence, but it was more difficult than I had imagined.self-confidence a strong belief that you can do things well and that other people will like you, which means you behave confidently in most situationsHe’s new in the job but he has plenty of self-confidence.Studies show that girls tend to lose some of their self-confidence in their teenage years.Students who get some kind of work experience develop greater self-confidence and better communication skills.morale the level of confidence, satisfaction, and hope that people feel, especially a group of people who work together: low/high moraleMorale among the soldiers has been low. | keep up morale (=keep it at a high level)They sang songs to keep up their morale until the rescuers arrived.assurance/self-assurance a feeling of calm confidence in your own abilities, especially because you have a lot of experienceShe envied the older woman’s assurance.Danby spoke to the committee with the self-assurance of an expert.self-esteem the feeling that you are someone who deserves to be liked and respectedGetting a job did a lot for her self-esteem.Sports should build a child’s self-esteem, not damage it. COLLOCATIONS – Meaning 2: the belief that you have the ability to do things well or deal with situations successfullyverbshave confidenceYoung teenagers often don’t have a lot of confidence.be full of confidenceThe team are full of confidence.brim with confidence (=be full of it)Clive walked into the room, brimming with confidence as usual.exude/radiate confidence (=show it in a very noticeable way)As the leader, you have to exude confidence and authority.lack/be lacking in confidenceShe lacked the confidence to talk to people.lose (your) confidenceHe’d been out of work for six months and had lost all his confidence.give somebody confidenceI had really good teachers who gave me a lot of confidence in myself.gain confidence (also grow/gain in confidence) (=become more confident)Paul did well in the job and gained a lot of confidence.boost/increase somebody’s confidence (=make someone feel more confident)One of my stories was published, which really boosted my confidence.build up somebody’s confidence (=gradually increase it)When you’ve had an accident, it takes a while to build up your confidence again.undermine somebody’s confidence (=gradually reduce it)His constant criticism was undermining my confidence.dent/shake somebody’s confidence (=make it less strong)A bad experience like that can dent your confidence.destroy/shatter somebody’s confidenceWhen she failed her degree, it shattered her confidence.somebody’s confidence grows/increasesSince she started her new school, her confidence has grown a lot.nounsa confidence boostThey offered me the job immediately, which was a real confidence boost.confidence building (=making it develop)Training for a big match is all about confidence building.phrasesa lack of confidenceShe had always suffered from insecurity and a lack of confidence.a loss of confidenceAs people age, they may suffer from a loss of confidence. Examples from the Corpus
confidence• A professional golfer tries to pull off a confidence trick against his own body.• You need patience and confidence to be a good teacher.• She sensed his waiting for her confidence, but knew he would never pressure her into saying anything she would rather not.• At the present uncertain stage in the economic cycle, the commodity most urgently lacking is confidence.• Opinion polls show that the voters have lost confidence in the administration.• As a result I know I developed much more confidence in my ability and I've pushed my grades up.• The country's highly respected Finance Ministry is facing a crisis of confidence that will be difficult to reverse.• I went into the test full of confidence, but it was more difficult than I had imagined.• An obligation of confidence can arise through contract, either express or implied.• The agency works hard to increase public confidence so that people are not afraid to report racist incidents.• It's obviously very important to build up the consumer's confidence in our product.• The key thing about being a quarterback is that you have to show confidence and lead the team.• I later learned there were some confidences Richard hadn't shared with me.• That confidence was echoed by Peter Scudamore when I spoke to him at Towcester yesterday.• After the accident it took a long time before she had the confidence to get back in a car again.• The new president has the confidence and backing of all of the leaders of the surrounding states.• "We have the confidence to beat Brazil, " said Sampson.with confidence• How can anyone say with confidence that the worst is over?• Gail can now drive a truck with confidence.every confidence• We had every confidence in the staff, they seemed so caring and understanding.• The instructor's used to training younger men, but has every confidence in his latest pupil.• Mr. Cousins has every confidence that the two-day meeting with the Community's senior officials will ensure acceptance.• The arrangements are working well and I have every confidence that the job will be completed satisfactorily on time.• We must show the Sports Council that our teachers and Society members have every confidence in the work we are promoting.• We have every confidence in you.• I ve every confidence in our back 4 this year, and the midfield is classy enough to control any match.breach of confidence• Harman J decided that the injunction restraining a breach of confidence should expire at the same time as a restrictive covenant.• Such a breach of confidence could rebound in all sorts of directions.• Opinions were expressed openly and freely without any breach of confidence.• In part this difficulty may stem from the uncertain legal nature of the action for breach of confidence.• There is no liability for breach of confidence if consent is obtained.• No breach of confidence was alleged but there was said to be a contract not to publish before the report.• You may prefer not to do so because of the risk of breach of confidence or discrimination.• It soon became clear that breach of confidence was actionable perse, and did not require a contractual relationship between the parties.share/exchange confidences• The two men share confidences, for they both have equal vested interests in the sport.From Longman Business Dictionaryconfidencecon‧fi‧dence /ˈkɒnfədənsˈkɑːn-/ noun [uncountable]1the feeling that you can trust someone or something to do what they say, work properly etcWe have every confidence in the sales and marketing team.Our top priority is to maintain customer confidence in our product. → see also breach of confidence2ECONOMICSthe feeling felt by businesses and investors that the economic situation will not become very badEconomic confidence was raised further by trade deregulation and lower interest rates.Confidence in the housing market stands at a 15-month high.A report by the Confederation of British Industry says Britain is enjoying the biggest increase in business confidence for ten years. → consumer confidence 