Wiktionary

insecure

English

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Etymology

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From in- +‎ secure, or from Medieval Latin insēcūrus, itself from in- (“in-, un-, non-”) + sēcūrus (“safe, certain”). Piecewise doublet of unsecure and unsure.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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insecure (comparative more insecure, superlative most insecure)

  1. Not secure.
    • 1927, Ernest Bramah [pseudonym; Ernest Brammah Smith], Max Carrados Mysteries:
      It was, as Carrados explained, entirely his own preposterous fault. Nothing but curiosity about the size of the room had impelled him to touch the walls, and the picture, having a weak cord or an insecure nail ... had it not brought something else down in its fall?
    • 1982, Albert Chan, “After the Fall of Peking”, in The Glory and Fall of the Ming Dynasty‎[1], →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 371:
      The Yung-li ruler, finding Chao-ch’ing insecure, fled to Wu-chou (梧州), Kuangsi province, and then to Kuei-lin, vigorously pursued by the Manchu army.
  2. Not comfortable or confident in oneself or in certain situations.
    Synonym: lost
    He's a nice guy and all, but seems to be rather insecure around other people.
    Imagine being so insecure that you make it against the law for folks to dislike you.
    • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 1, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
      The half-dozen pieces […] were painted white and carved with festoons of flowers, birds and cupids. […]   The bed was the most extravagant piece.  Its graceful cane halftester rose high towards the cornice and was so festooned in carved white wood that the effect was positively insecure, as if the great couch were trimmed with icing sugar.
    • 2021, Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan, “What is... jealousy?”, in Let's Talk About It, →ISBN, page 191:
      When you're knee-deep in these insecure feelings, it can be hard to see clearly.

Antonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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Anagrams

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