Mistrust vs. Distrust

Mistrust vs. Distrust Mistrust vs. Distrust Mistrust vs. Distrust By Maeve Maddox A reader wants to know if there is a difference between the words mistrust and distrust. The short answer is, â€Å"No.† As verbs, both distrust and mistrust mean, â€Å"to be without confidence.† As nouns, both distrust and mistrust mean, â€Å"lack of trust or confidence.† The Google Ngram Viewer graph shows distrust as the more common of the two words since 1800. When I entered various phrases, the ones that began with distrust were more common than the ones with mistrust–with one curious exception: â€Å"mistrust my wife† was more common than â€Å"distrust my wife.† And neither â€Å"mistrust my husband† nor â€Å"distrust my husband† brought up any results at all. I predict that mistrust will eventually drop out of general use. I base my prediction on the fact that a red squiggly line appears under mistrust when I type a phrase with it into the Google search box. Another clue is that the search results come up prefaced with the question, â€Å"Do you mean distrust?† The only possible distinction I can discern between mistrust and distrust is that mistrust is a slightly â€Å"softer† word that may imply some doubt that the lack of trust is justified. Here are some examples of current usage of these synonyms: Marilyns insecurity made  her mistrust  everyone. Gen Halvorson cant resist reaching out to the little boy, despite his fathers obvious mistrust of her talents and her motives.   Politics has become static in America, and Americans  have always distrusted politicians.      I  distrust those  people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires. –Susan B. Anthony   Research has found we  distrust those who  are mean with their money. Cynicism  is an  attitude  or state of mind characterized by a general distrust of others motives believing that humans are selfish by nature. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Direct and Indirect Objects60 Synonyms for â€Å"Trip†Empathic or Empathetic?