confidant

noun

con·​fi·​dant ˈkän-fə-ˌdänt 

 also  -ˌdant,

-dənt

: one to whom secrets are entrusted

especially : intimate

He is a trusted confidant of the president.

Did you know?

If you're confident of the trustworthiness of your confidants, you're tuned into the origins of the word confidant. The word comes, via French, from the Italian confidente, meaning "trusting, having trust in," from Latin confīdere, meaning "to put one’s trust in, have confidence in.” Other descendants of confīdere in English include confide, confidence, confident, and confidential, all of which ultimately have Latin fīdere, meaning "to trust (in), rely (on)," as their root. Confidant (and its variant confidante, used especially of a woman) and confident are often confused, a topic about which we have plenty to say.

Did you know?

Is it confident or confidant? (Or is it confidante?)

If you find yourself unsure whether you should choose confident or confidant don’t feel bad; confidant comes to English from the French word confident, and when the word first entered our language it was often spelled that way, rather than as confidant. The difference is quite simple: confidant is a noun (meaning "a person in whom you confide things"), and confident is an adjective (defined as “having confidence”). You may well be confident in your confidant, but you would not be confidant in your confident. Although this distinction has not always been observed by writers, confidante is generally used for a female confidant. The word confidant is more frequently used to describe a man, but it may be applied to either gender.

Synonyms

• alter ego
• amigo
• buddy
• chum
• compadre
• comrade
• confidante
• crony
• familiar
• friend
• intimate
• mate [chiefly British]
• musketeer
• pal

Examples of confidant in a Sentence

He is a trusted confidant of the president.

she's my confidant; I tell her everything without reservation

Recent Examples on the Web

The guy who never played college basketball and went to UCLA with the intention of going to medical school became the Lakers legend’s primary offseason trainer and, ultimately, close confidant. —Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Jan. 2025

Even more shocking, the percentage of respondents who listed zero confidants nearly tripled. —Faith Hill, The Atlantic, 24 Jan. 2025

Meanwhile, Chinese state media noted that China's Vice President Han Zheng met with Trump confidant Elon Musk on Sunday. —Nathan Bomey, Axios, 20 Jan. 2025

In the November 2018 conversation, Madigan’s longtime confidant and co-defendant Michael McClain asked the speaker how his meeting with Pritzker had gone. —Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, 14 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French confident, borrowed from Italian confidente, noun derivative of confidente "trusting, having trust in," borrowed from Latin confīdent-, confīdens, present participle of confīdere "to put one's trust in, have confidence in" — more at confide

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

confidant

noun

con·​fi·​dant ˈkän-fə-ˌdant 

-ˌdänt

: a person to whom secrets are entrusted : a close friend