Etymograph

English

confidence

Confidence comes from Middle English confidence, from Latin cōnfīdentia ‘assurance’, possibly via Old French, from cōnfīdō ‘to confide in’, from con- + fīdō ‘to trust’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeydʰ-1‘to trust’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰéydʰeti2‘to trust’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*feiðō2‘to trust’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīdō3‘to trust’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōnfīdō3‘to believe, confide in’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōnfīdentia3‘assurance, confidence’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500confidence3
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1611confidence3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *bʰéydʰeti
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin fido
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English confidence
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “It is better to truſt in the Lord :…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeydʰ-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *bʰéydʰeti‘to trust’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰéydʰetiWiktionary, Latin fido‘to trust’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*feiðōWiktionary, Latin fido‘to trust’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfīdōWiktionary, English confidence‘to trust’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōnfīdōWiktionary, English confidence‘to believe, confide in’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōnfīdentiaWiktionary, English confidence‘assurance, confidence’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500confidenceWiktionary, English confidence
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1611confidenceWiktionary, English confidence. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “It is better to truſt in the Lord :…”

Equivalent to confide + ence

Proto-Indo-European *bʰeydʰ- ‘to trust’

…

Proto-Italic *feiðō ‘to trust’

Latin fīdō ‘trust’

Latin confīdō ‘to put trust in, have confidence in’

Middle Scots confide

English confide

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰeydʰ- ‘to trust’

federal, federation, defy, confederate, fidelity, defiance, bode, foi, fealty, infidel, confidante, perfidy, 28 more

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰéydʰeti ‘to trust’

abide, bide, 9 more

through Latin fīdō ‘trust’

affidavit, fiduciary, diffident, 6 more

Today it means

noun Self-assurance.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “confidence”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *bʰéydʰeti, Latin fido. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰeydʰ- / confidence

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