insecure

adjective

USin-suh-KYUUR/ɪnsəˈkjʊɹ/UKin-suh-KYOOR/ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)/

2 meanings of insecure

1
adjective
Lacking comfort or confidence in oneself or in particular situations.
She felt insecure about her abilities when she joined the senior team.
Years of harsh criticism left him deeply insecure around authority figures.
Similarunsure, self-conscious, anxious, diffident, unconfident
Oppositeconfident, self-assured, secure, assured
2
adjective
Not firmly fixed, safe, or protected; liable to give way or fail.
The bridge's insecure foundations worried the inspecting engineers.
Refugees often face an insecure existence with no guarantee of shelter.
Similarunstable, unsafe, precarious, shaky, unsteady
Oppositesecure, stable, safe, firm

Practice

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Origin

Formed from in- ("not") plus secure, or from Medieval Latin insēcūrus, which combines in- ("un-, non-") with sēcūrus ("safe, certain"). It is a piecewise doublet of unsecure and unsure.