insecurity

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin īnsēcūritās. By surface analysis, insecure +‎ -ity.

Pronunciation

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Noun

insecurity (countable and uncountable, plural insecurities)

1. A lack of security; uncertainty.

   Synonym: insecureness

   Antonym: security

   • 2020 July 1, Paul Stephen, “Mental health in the workplace”, in Rail, page 51:

     They are also more likely to be on freelance or short-term contracts, which can contribute to feelings of financial insecurity and therefore a greater tendency for people to attend work even they are unwell.

   1. A lack of confidence in oneself.

      Synonyms: insecureness, self-doubt

      Antonyms: security, self-assurance, self-confidence

   2. The state of being subject to danger (physical, economic, or otherwise).

      economic insecurity

      Synonyms: exposure, insecureness, precariousness, precarity, vulnerability

      Antonyms: safety, security

Related terms

• insecure, insecurely

Translations

lack of security, uncertainty

• Armenian: անվստահելիություն (anvstaheliutʻyun)
• Bulgarian: несигурност (bg) f (nesigurnost)
• Danish: usikkerhed
• Dutch: onzekerheid (nl)
• Finnish: epävarmuus (fi)
• German: Unsicherheit (de)
• Greek: ανασφάλεια (el) f (anasfáleia)
• Hungarian: bizonytalanság (hu)
• Irish: neamhdhiongbháilteacht f
• Japanese: コンプレックス (ja) (konpurekkusu)
• Polish: niepewność (pl) f
• Portuguese: insegurança (pt) f
• Russian: небезопасность (ru) (nebezopasnostʹ), комплекс (ru) m (kompleks)
• Ukrainian: невпе́вненість f (nevpévnenistʹ, literally “uncertainty”)

vulnerability

• Bulgarian: уязвимост (bg) f (ujazvimost)
• Dutch: onveiligheid (nl) f, kwestbaarheid, kwetsbaarheid (nl)
• Finnish: turvattomuus (fi)
• Greek: ανασφάλεια (el) f (anasfáleia)
• Portuguese: periculosidade f
• Russian: незащищённость (ru) f (nezaščiščónnostʹ)
• Ukrainian: незахи́щеність f (nezaxýščenistʹ)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} insécurité (fr)
• German: ^{(please verify)} Unsicherheit (de) f
• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} insecuritate (ro) f
• Telugu: ^{(please verify)} అభద్రత (te) (abhadrata)

See also

• (danger): peace of mind (contrastive)