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unreassuring

unreassuring

6.9
Making you feel worried or unsafe
  • adjective
  • /ˌʌnˈriːəˌʃʊrɪŋ/
translation icon : inquietante
  • The doctor's explanation was unreassuring, leaving her with more questions than answers.

Examples

  • Something to take her mind off those newscasters and their smooth, unreassuring voices.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • It was a profoundly unreassuring prospect; but at least Edward's new prescriptions for the succession had the benefit of clarity.

    Academic text (2010)
  • His unreassuring tone made everyone in the room feel tense and uncertain.

  • Despite his attempts to comfort her, his unreassuring words only increased her anxiety about the situation.

Synonyms

frightening
vsunreassuring
287 3.0

Causing someone to feel afraid

is less extreme, focusing on uncertainty rather than intense fear
troubling
vsunreassuring
154 4.0

Causing worry or distress

often signals doubt or lowers confidence rather than only heavy distress
intimidating
vsunreassuring
93 5.3

Making someone feel afraid, nervous, or less confident

tends to cause doubt and uncertainty rather than direct threat or force
unsettling
vsunreassuring
64 4.2

Making you feel worried or uneasy

tends to make people feel uncertain or less confident rather than briefly uneasy
worrisome
vsunreassuring
41 3.9

Causing worry or concern

leans toward creating doubt or lower confidence rather than simple concern
unnerving
vsunreassuring
28 6.8

Making someone feel nervous or lose confidence

is milder, causing doubt or uncertainty rather than strong fear
concerning
vsunreassuring
25 3.5

Making people feel worried

suggests potential problems and creates uncertainty rather than only general unease
discouraging
vsunreassuring
15 3.9

Causing someone to feel less confident or hopeful about trying something

tends to create anxiety and uncertainty rather than only lowering morale
disquieting
vsunreassuring
8 7.0

Making people feel worried or uneasy

implies longer lasting uncertainty rather than only momentary unease
worrying
vsunreassuring
6 2.0

Making people feel nervous or concerned

tends to create uncertainty or lower confidence rather than only direct distress
discomforting
vsunreassuring
3 4.2

Causing someone to feel uneasy or worried

relates more to creating doubt and lack of confidence than mere unease
intimidatory
vsunreassuring
1 8.1

To make someone feel afraid or less confident

often lacks deliberate threat, instead creating doubt or less confidence
unencouraging
vsunreassuring
6.5

Something that makes people feel less hopeful or confident

is about causing doubt and anxiety rather than just lacking support
unrelaxing
vsunreassuring
6.1

Something that makes you feel tense and not calm

is about causing uncertainty and lowering confidence rather than physical tension

Antonyms

134 1.4

Making someone feel less worried or upset

78 3.1

Makes someone feel less worried and calmer

How Reassuring

reassuring
78 3.1
comforting
134 1.4
neutral
24 3.5
unreassuring
6.9
worrying
6 2.0
alarming
94 3.7

Surface Forms

unreassuring positive

Morphology

unreassuring = reassuring (semi-transparent) = un + re + assure + sure + ing

The adjective is a straightforward negative formation from 'reassuring', meaning 'not reassuring'.

Etymology

The word unreassuring comes from un- 'not' + reassure, which is from assure 'make sure' or 'calm'. So, something unreassuring fails to calm you or make you feel sure, and this is why it causes worry.