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Definition of "modesty" []

  • The state or quality of being modest. (noun)
  • Reserve or propriety in speech, dress, or behavior. (noun)
  • Lack of pretentiousness; simplicity. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "modesty" in a sentence
  • "It is high time for _true_ modesty to take the place of that _false modesty_ which has driven virtue, like an exile, out of the land, and peopled it largely with"
  • "I brought up the term modesty, and none of the 4 young ladies knew what the word meant!"
  • "Major Bath, returned the compliment with a very low bow; but did not venture to make the first advance to familiarity, as he was truly possessed of that quality which the Greeks considered in the highest light of honour, and which we term modesty; though indeed, neither ours nor the Latin language hath any word adequate to the idea of the original."