confidence
/ˈkɒnfɪdəns/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈkɑːnfɪdəns/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈkän-fə-dən(t)s -ˌden(t)s/ (ame, mw)
confidence — 名詞
- confidencesingular
- confidencesplural
1. a feeling of being sure about how well you can do something, or the belief that
信心；自信
對自身能力或未來的確定感
a feeling of being sure about how well you can do something, or the belief that someone or something will succeed as planned
Aoi's confidence in her public speaking skills grew after every presentation at work.
每次上台報告後，Aoi 對公開演講的信心就越來越強。
confidence + in + noun phrase
The sales team has full confidence that this year's targets will be met.
銷售團隊有信心今年一定能達成目標。
have confidence + that-clause
Losing the first match shook Kabir's confidence, but he trained harder and came back.
輸掉第一場比賽動搖了 Kabir 的信心，但他更加努力訓練後重新站了起來。
Roya never lost confidence in her own abilities, even when her small business faced serious financial trouble.
即使小生意面臨嚴重的財務困難，Roya 對自己的能力也從未失去信心。
- self-assurance
stronger, more formal, emphasises inner calm
- faith
stronger, can imply belief without evidence
- trust
focuses on reliance on others rather than on oneself
- belief
more general, less emotional than confidence
- doubt
lack of certainty
- insecurity
lack of self-confidence
- uncertainty
state of not being sure
文法句型
confidence + in + noun/pronoun
have confidence + that-clause
用法筆記
Frequently followed by 'in' (confidence in someone/something) or a that-clause (confidence that...). Contrast with sense 4: this sense is about belief and certainty, whereas sense 4 is about the relationship of trust that allows sharing secrets.
常見錯誤
2. a piece of private or personal information that someone tells you, trusting that
秘密；知心話
私下告知的個人隱私
a piece of private or personal information that someone tells you, trusting that you will not repeat it to others
Over coffee, Emre and Folake exchanged confidences about their families and childhoods.
喝咖啡時，Emre 和 Folake 互相吐露了各自家庭和童年的大小事。
exchange confidences
Manuela never repeats a confidence that a friend has shared with her in private.
Manuela 從不洩漏朋友私下跟她說的秘密。
The diary contained all the confidences she had never dared to say out loud.
那本日記裡寫滿了她一直不敢說出口的知心話。
Chiara told her sister a confidence she had kept hidden for years about their move abroad.
Chiara 向姐姐說出了一個關於她們搬到國外、隱藏多年的秘密。
- secret
more general, does not imply trust or intimacy
- private matter
more formal, emphasises the personal nature
- public knowledge
something everyone knows
文法句型
share confidences with
exchange confidences
用法筆記
Unlike sense 1, this sense is countable ('a confidence' / 'confidences') and refers to the actual secret information shared. The phrase 'in confidence' (sense 3) describes the manner of sharing rather than the secret itself.
常見錯誤
3. a situation in which information is given to someone with the clear understandin
機密（狀態）
告知對方不得外傳的信任狀態
a situation in which information is given to someone with the clear understanding that it will not be passed on to anyone else
Kabir told his manager about the job offer in confidence, asking her not to mention it to the team.
Kabir 私下告訴主管他收到了另一份工作邀約，請她不要告訴同事。
tell someone something in confidence
The lawyer keeps all client communications in strict confidence under professional rules.
律師依職業規範對所有客戶通訊內容嚴格保密。
in strict confidence
Pim accepted the documents on the understanding that they were shared in confidence.
Pim 收下那些文件時知道這些是私下分享的機密資料。
Yasmin only discussed the budget problems in confidence with the finance director.
Yasmin 只私下跟財務主管討論了預算問題。
- confidentially
adverb, more formal, used in professional settings
- privately
simpler, less formal
- publicly
openly, without secrecy
文法句型
tell someone something in confidence
in strict confidence
用法筆記
Almost always appears in the fixed prepositional phrase 'in confidence' (or 'in strict confidence'). The noun does not take an article here. Do not confuse with sense 2 — 'in confidence' is an adverbial phrase describing how something is said, not the secret itself.
常見錯誤
4. the state of having a close, trusting relationship in which people share persona
信任關係
建立互信、分享內心話的親密關係
the state of having a close, trusting relationship in which people share personal thoughts and secrets, believing the other person will keep them private
After months of working side by side, Gabriela took Aoi into her confidence and told her about the family struggles.
並肩工作幾個月後，Gabriela 把 Aoi 當作知己，向她傾訴了家裡的困境。
take someone into one's confidence
Aaron was never the type to take a colleague into his confidence, preferring to keep his problems to himself.
Aaron 一向不輕易向同事吐露心事，寧可自己扛著。
Their friendship grew into a deep confidence where neither feared judgment from the other.
兩人的友誼形成了深厚的信任關係，誰都不怕被對方批評。
The night-shift nurse took her junior colleague into her confidence during their long hours together.
值大夜班的護理師在漫長的共事時間裡，漸漸把資淺同事當成了知己。
- distance
emotional or social separation
文法句型
take someone into one's confidence
用法筆記
Primarily appears in the idiomatic phrase 'take someone into your confidence' (to begin trusting someone with personal secrets). Unlike sense 1, this sense is about trust in a relationship rather than belief in abilities. Unlike sense 2, it describes the relationship or state, not the secret itself.
常見錯誤
confidence — 形容詞
- confidencepositive
- more confidencecomparative
- most confidencesuperlative
1. used to describe a type of fraud in which the criminal first earns the victim's
詐騙的
先取信再行騙的犯罪手法
used to describe a type of fraud in which the criminal first earns the victim's trust and then cheats them out of money or property
Romi's uncle lost his life savings to a confidence trick run by a man claiming to be a bank officer.
Romi 的叔叔被一名自稱銀行專員的男子用詐騙手法騙走了畢生積蓄。
confidence trick: a fraud that relies on gaining trust
The newspaper warned readers about a confidence scheme targeting elderly homeowners by offering fake repair services.
報紙提醒讀者注意一種針對老年屋主的詐騙手法，假裝提供維修服務來騙錢。
In old movies, the confidence man always wore a fine suit and spoke with perfect politeness.
在老電影裡，騙子總是穿著筆挺的西裝，說話客客氣氣。
- con
shortened form, informal, more common in everyday speech
- fraudulent
broader, covers any type of deception, not just trust-based schemes
文法句型
confidence + noun (trick / man / scheme / game)
用法筆記
This adjective only appears before specific nouns — 'confidence trick', 'confidence man', 'confidence scheme', 'confidence game'. It is never used predicatively (*'The scheme was confidence'). The closest synonym is 'con' as in 'con artist' or 'con game', which is derived from 'confidence'.