What does "confidence" mean?

1. (self-assurance) the feeling that you can do things well and that people like you. 2. (trust in something) a feeling of trust or belief that someone or something is good or honest. 3. (a secret) a secret that you tell someone because you trust them. 4. (certainty) the feeling of being certain that something is true or will happen.

confidence — meaning, definition & examples

Q: Is it correct to say "He has a lot of confidence to his work."?

No — say "He has a lot of confidence in his work.". Use the preposition 'in' when expressing trust or belief in someone or something.

Word

01self-assurance

B1 · Intermediate Uncountable noun

n. the feeling that you can do things well and that people like you.

n. a state of self-assurance and belief in one's own abilities or qualities.

“After practicing for weeks, she walked onto the stage with great confidence.”

“The young architect's confidence grew as the senior partners began to incorporate her innovative designs into their major urban projects.”

Pitfall

He has a lot of confidence to his work.

He has a lot of confidence in his work.

Use the preposition 'in' when expressing trust or belief in someone or something.

Synonyms

self-esteem poise assurance

Antonyms

insecurity doubt

02trust in something

B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun

n. a feeling of trust or belief that someone or something is good or honest.

n. the feeling of reliance or trust in a person, entity, or outcome.

“The public has lost confidence in the government's ability to fix the economy.”

“Investors expressed renewed confidence in the tech sector following the release of the quarterly earnings report, which exceeded all market expectations.”

Synonyms

trust faith reliance

Antonyms

distrust suspicion

03a secret

C1 · Advanced Countable noun Formal

n. a secret that you tell someone because you trust them.

n. a secret or private matter shared with another person in trust.

“She told me about her new job in confidence, so I didn't tell anyone else.”

“The diplomat shared several sensitive details in strict confidence, expecting that the journalist would respect the off-the-record nature of their conversation.”

Usage

Often used in the phrase 'in confidence'.

Synonyms

secretprivate matter

04certainty

B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun

n. the feeling of being certain that something is true or will happen.

n. a feeling of certainty or strong conviction regarding a fact or a future event.

“I can say with confidence that our team will win the game tomorrow.”

“The lead researcher stated with confidence that the new data confirmed their original hypothesis, effectively ending the long-standing debate in the field.”

Synonyms

certainty conviction

Antonyms

uncertainty

Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “confidence” in context.

Verb

01. increase confidence

“Positive feedback from your manager can significantly increase confidence in your own abilities.”

verb + noun

“Recent polling suggests confidence in the course of the war is weakening, with the share of Russians who believe the campaign in Ukraine is going well falling to its lowest level since April 2022.”

The Guardian 14 Aug 2026

“Swiatek, 25, dropped ⁠the next game but closed out the final three with confidence, landing a clean strike on match point to end her title drought.”

Al Jazeera 14 Aug 2026

“These can be a "big knock" to her confidence, particularly when working with clients - she runs a business community called Baking Bosses which helps people build baking businesses from home.”

BBC News 3 Aug 2026

From Middle English confidence, from Latin cōnfīdentia (possibly via Old French confidence), from cōnfīdō (“believe, confide in”) from con- (“with”) + fīdō (“trust”). By surface analysis, confide + ence.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

VERB

NOUN

confidence(B2)

ADJECTIVE

ADVERB