self-effacing
adjective
self-ef·fac·ing
ˌself-i-ˈfā-siŋ 
-e-
: having or showing a tendency to make oneself modestly or shyly inconspicuous
His passions and faith run soul-deep, his gentle wit is always self-effacing and never insulting …—
Don Gaetz
Don Gaetz… she was an extremely self-effacing, private person who never sought the limelight and did not leave the usual artifacts that enable a biographer to reconstruct life patterns.—Douglas R. McManis
Douglas R. McManisSynonyms
Examples of self-effacing in a Sentence
he's dating a sweet, self-effacing girl
Recent Examples on the Web
An… The Brink of Peace: The Israeli-Syrian Negotiations An informed, thoughtful, and refreshingly self-effacing insider's study of a four-year negotiation.
—Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2024
From the premiere stage, Hoult recalled his excitement at discovering Eastwood wanted him for the film’s central role but also the director’s self-effacing dig at his own advancing age.
—Chris Lee, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2024
The actor-director, in typical self-effacing fashion, doesn't claim to have solved the problem of the Holocaust film in making one himself.
—Esther Zuckerman, TIME, 1 Nov. 2024
Here, Rowlands plays Sarah Lawson, a self-effacing love addict with no sense of self beyond her relation to others.
—Emma Madden, Vulture, 16 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for self-effacing 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2024
From the premiere stage, Hoult recalled his excitement at discovering Eastwood wanted him for the film’s central role but also the director’s self-effacing dig at his own advancing age.
—Chris Lee, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2024
The actor-director, in typical self-effacing fashion, doesn't claim to have solved the problem of the Holocaust film in making one himself.
—Esther Zuckerman, TIME, 1 Nov. 2024
Here, Rowlands plays Sarah Lawson, a self-effacing love addict with no sense of self beyond her relation to others.
—Emma Madden, Vulture, 16 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for self-effacing
Articles Related to self-effacing
Dictionary Entries Near self-effacing
Cite this Entry
“Self-effacing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-effacing. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share