self-effacementn.
/ˌsɛlfᵻˈfeɪsm(ə)nt/, U.S. /ˌsɛlfəˈfeɪsmənt/ The action or state of keeping oneself or one's behaviour inconspicuous or in the background, esp. in order to avoid claiming attention or attracting praise.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > humility > modesty > [noun] > self-effacement
self-effacement1853
self-effacingness1906
self-naughting1911
1853 Times 27 Apr. 8/6 Representative Government can only come with credit..by..restrained vanity and patriotic self-effacement on the part of isolated senators.
1883 J. Hawthorne Fortune's Fool i. i. 2 The completest private humility and self-effacement.
1948 M. McLuhan Lett. 5 Sept. (1987) 202 I've tried to dim him down with suggestions of self-effacement as a necessary strategy.
1986 S. R. Donaldson Mirror of her Dreams (1987) Prologue 3 Master Quillon..had surprised everyone by casting aside his self-effacement and speaking out loudly.
2017 Mid Devon Gaz. (Nexis) 7 Mar. 22 Alice Chandra..played her role with quiet shyness, self-effacement, and modesty.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, January 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.1853