misgivings

/mɪsˈɡɪvɪŋz/

Say it: mis-GIV-ingz

noun A feeling of doubt, apprehension, or uncertainty about the outcome or wisdom of something.
Despite her initial misgivings, she accepted the new role and quickly excelled.
🇪🇸 recelos

📖 Seen in the wild

The naturalist's notebooks recorded not only meticulous observations of flora and fauna but also frank reflections on his own intellectual misgivings.
collected by @missha

✏️ misgivings in a sentence

The committee had serious misgivings about the financial viability of the project.
I have some misgivings about letting him borrow the car again.
He harbored deep misgivings about the new policy, but kept them to himself.
She looked back on her decision to move abroad with no misgivings whatsoever.
The investors expressed their misgivings at the annual shareholder meeting.
Despite his own misgivings, he followed the captain's orders without question.
Her cheerful demeanor hid any misgivings she might have felt about the journey.

🔁 Synonyms & antonyms

doubts qualms apprehensions reservations scruples unease hesitations forebodings

doubts · a more general term for any lack of certainty; misgivings are specifically about a future action.

qualms · often implies a moral or ethical hesitation, a pang of conscience.

apprehensions · focuses more on the anxiety or fear about what might happen.

reservations · suggests specific, often rationally-based points of hesitation rather than a general feeling of unease.

Opposites: confidence, assurance, certainty, conviction, trust

🌱 Where it comes from

The word comes from the now archaic verb 'misgive', which combined 'mis-' (meaning 'badly' or 'wrongly') with an old sense of 'give' that meant 'to suggest or cause to feel'. To 'misgive' someone was to make them feel apprehensive or doubtful. The noun 'misgivings' emerged in the 17th century to describe this specific feeling of unease about a future event.

🧩 How it's used

Common patterns:

have misgivingsexpress misgivingsserious misgivingsdespite my misgivingsharbor misgivingsinitial misgivings

Misgivings is almost always used in the plural. The singular 'a misgiving' is very uncommon in modern English. The word implies an emotional sense of unease about a future course of action, making it distinct from more rational words like 'reservations' or more moral ones like 'qualms'. It is a highly versatile word, fitting naturally into both formal and informal speech and writing.

Word family: misgive

💬 Quick answers

What does 'misgivings' mean?

Misgivings are feelings of doubt, worry, or apprehension about a future event or a decision. It's that nagging feeling that something might not be a good idea or could go wrong.

What's the difference between misgivings and reservations?

Misgivings are typically more emotional, stemming from a gut feeling of unease or apprehension. Reservations are often more rational and specific, indicating particular points of doubt or conditions you have about a plan.

Is 'misgivings' a formal word?

Misgivings is a neutral word that is appropriate for both formal contexts, like business reports, and informal, everyday conversations. It is neither slang nor overly literary.

Can you have 'a misgiving'?

While grammatically correct, the singular form 'a misgiving' is very rare. The word is almost always used in its plural form, 'misgivings', even when referring to a single source of doubt.

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