modesty

English

Etymology

From Middle French modestie, from Latin modestia; equivalent to modest +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɒd.ə.sti/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

modesty (usually uncountable, plural modesties)

1. The quality of being modest; having a limited and not overly high opinion of oneself and one's abilities.
   • 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter VIII, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:

     At her invitation he outlined for her the succeeding chapters with terse military accuracy ; and what she liked best and best understood was avoidance of that false modesty which condescends, turning technicality into pabulum.

2. Moderate behaviour; reserve.
3. (specifically) Pudency, avoidance of sexual explicitness.

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “moderate behaviour”): impudence, extravagance
• (antonym(s) of “quality of being modest”): arrogance
• (antonym(s) of “pudency”): immodesty

Derived terms

• false modesty
• modesty bag
• modesty bit
• modesty board
• modesty panel
• modesty piece
• outrage of modesty
• plural of modesty

Related terms

• modestly

Translations

the quality of being modest

• Arabic: تَوَاضُع (ar) m (tawāḍuʕ)
• Armenian: համեստություն (hy) (hamestutʻyun)
• Azerbaijani: təvazö
• Belarusian: сці́пласць f (scíplascʹ), скро́мнасць f (skrómnascʹ)
• Bikol Central: kabinian
• Bulgarian: скро́мност (bg) f (skrómnost)
• Catalan: modèstia (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 謙虛／谦虚 (zh) (qiānxū)

• Czech: skromnost (cs) f
• Danish: beskedenhed c
• Dutch: bescheidenheid (nl)
• Esperanto: modesteco
• Finnish: vaatimattomuus (fi)
• French: modestie (fr) f
• Galician: modestia (gl) f
• Georgian: მოკრძალება (moḳrʒaleba), მოკრძალებულობა (moḳrʒalebuloba), თავმდაბლობა (tavmdabloba)
• German: Bescheidenheit (de) f
• Greek: μετριοφροσύνη (el) f (metriofrosýni)

  Ancient: αἰδοσύνη f (aidosúnē), αἰδημοσύνη f (aidēmosúnē)

• Hungarian: szerénység (hu)
• Irish: adhnáire f
• Italian: modestia (it) f
• Latin: modestia f
• Macedonian: скромност f (skromnost)
• Maori: whakamōwaitanga
• Old English: sċamfæstnes f
• Persian: آزرم (fa) (âzarm)
• Polish: skromność (pl) f
• Portuguese: modéstia (pt) f
• Romanian: modestie (ro) f
• Russian: скро́мность (ru) f (skrómnostʹ), сде́ржанность (ru) f (sdéržannostʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: скро̏мно̄ст f

  Roman: skrȍmnōst (sh) f

• Slovak: skromnosť f
• Slovene: skromnost
• Spanish: modestia (es) f
• Swedish: blygsamhet (sv) c
• Thai: ความอ่อนน้อมถ่อมตน (kwaam òn nóm tòm dton)
• Turkish: alçakgönüllülük
• Ukrainian: скро́мність f (skrómnistʹ)

moderate behaviour; reserve

• Armenian: համեստություն (hy) (hamestutʻyun)
• Catalan: modèstia (ca) f, reserves (ca) f pl
• Dutch: gereserveerdheid (nl), schroom (nl)
• Finnish: vaatimattomuus (fi)
• Georgian: თავმდაბლობა (tavmdabloba), თავდაჭერილობა (tavdač̣eriloba), მორიდებულობა (moridebuloba), ზომიერება (zomiereba)
• Greek: μετριοπάθεια (el) f (metriopátheia)
• Maori: whakamōwaitanga
• Polish: skromność (pl) f
• Romanian: rezervă (ro) f
• Russian: скро́мность (ru) f (skrómnostʹ), сде́ржанность (ru) f (sdéržannostʹ), благопристо́йность (ru) f (blagopristójnostʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: скро̏мно̄ст f

  Roman: skrȍmnōst (sh) f

• Spanish: modestia (es) f

pudency, avoidance of sexual explicitness

• Arabic: حِشْمَة f (ḥišma)
• Catalan: pudor (ca) f
• Esperanto: seksmodesteco
• Finnish: säädyllisyys (fi), häveliäisyys (fi), kainous (fi), siveys (fi)
• French: pudeur (fr) f
• German: Sittsamkeit (de) f
• Greek: ταπεινότητα (el) f (tapeinótita), σεμνότητα (el) f (semnótita)
• Latin: pudor m
• Polish: skromność (pl) f
• Romanian: castitate (ro) f, puritate (ro) f
• Russian: скро́мность (ru) f (skrómnostʹ), целому́дрие (ru) n (celomúdrije), засте́нчивость (ru) f (zasténčivostʹ), стыдли́вость (ru) f (stydlívostʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: че̏дно̄ст f

  Roman: čȅdnōst (sh) f

• Spanish: pudor (es) m
• Tocharian B: kwīpe

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Telugu: ^{(please verify)} అణకువ (te) (aṇakuva)