distrust
/dɪsˈtrʌst
/noun [mass noun]
The feeling that someone or something cannot be relied upon: the public’s distrust of politicians...
- But it reflects the public distrust of the police.
- They reflect an inherent distrust of artistic or intellectual pursuits.
- Public distrust of the government pops up all over the place.
Synonyms
mistrust, suspicion, wariness, chariness, lack of trust, lack of confidence, lack of faith;
scepticism, doubt, doubtfulness, dubiety, cynicism;
misgivings, questioning, qualms;
disbelief, unbelief, incredulity, incredulousness, discredit
informal leeriness
verb [with object]
Doubt the honesty or reliability of; regard with suspicion: speculation remained that the Army distrusted the peace process...
- They suspected his culture, distrusted his politics and opposed his economics.
- Kelly distrusted them and suspected them of deliberate deception.
- And really, who can blame her for distrusting the world?
Synonyms
mistrust, be suspicious of, be wary/chary of, regard with suspicion, suspect, look askance at, have no confidence/faith in;
be sceptical of, have doubts about, doubt, be unsure of/about, be unconvinced about, take with a pinch/grain of salt;
have misgivings about, wonder about, question;
disbelieve (in), not believe, discredit, discount, be incredulous of
informal be leery of, smell a rat
Derivatives
distruster
- Brown is a centraliser, a statist, a tax 'n' spender, a distruster of markets, a man who tolerates enterprise only within tightly restricted government terms.
- Now, this may sound funny coming from me - the ultimate distruster of LE - but I think they do have the right guy.
- The distrusters are more likely to have had a promiscuous sexual history and a greater associated rate of STD's.