How to say "confidence" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 信用しんようnoun, suru verb, transitive verbConfidence as trust placed in another person or party — believing what they say and relying on them. It also covers reputation. It is not the word for confidence in your own abilities.私はもう彼を信用しない。↗I do not trust him any longer.
- 自信じしんnounThe word for confidence in oneself: belief in your own abilities or judgment. When English 'confidence' means self-assurance rather than trust in others, this is the word you want.
- 信頼しんらいnoun, suru verb, transitive verbConfidence in another person or thing: trust, faith, and reliance. Use it for 'I have confidence in her' — the sense of counting on someone — rather than for confidence in your own abilities.
- 確信かくしんnoun, suru verb, transitive verbConfidence as certainty — a firm conviction that something is true or will happen. This is the 'confident' of 'I am confident that he is right', not confidence in a person or in yourself.
- 信望しんぼうnounThe confidence and esteem in which a person is held by others, shading into popularity. Seldom the word you want for plain 'confidence'; it really describes a trusted, well-liked figure.彼女はその町での信望を得た。↗She acquired credit with in the town.
Choose 自信 for confidence in yourself, 信用 and 信頼 for confidence in others (trust and reliance), 確信 for confident certainty that something is true, and 信望 for the confidence and esteem a person commands.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
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