Trustworthiness vs. Trust — What's the Difference?
By Fiza Rafique & Maham Liaqat — Updated on April 26, 2024
Trustworthiness is a quality or attribute, indicating reliability and dependability, while trust is a belief in someone's trustworthiness or reliability.
Difference Between Trustworthiness and Trust
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Trustworthiness refers to the characteristics that make a person or entity reliable and worthy of trust, encompassing attributes like integrity, honesty, and dependability. Trust, on the other hand, is the confidence or belief that one places in someone or something based on perceived trustworthiness.
A person's trustworthiness is assessed over time through consistent actions that demonstrate ethical behavior, whereas trust can be established more quickly based on initial impressions or recommendations from others.
Trustworthiness is an attribute that can be enhanced or diminished by one's actions and decisions, influencing how others perceive an individual or organization. Trust, however, can fluctuate more rapidly depending on new information or changes in circumstances.
In relationships, whether personal or professional, trustworthiness is a fundamental quality that fosters long-term interactions and reliability. Trust is the resulting state of mind that emerges when trustworthiness is consistently demonstrated.
Evaluating trustworthiness often involves objective measures and observations of behavior, while the feeling of trust is more subjective and can be influenced by emotions and personal experiences.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
The quality of being reliable and dependable.
The belief in the reliability of someone.
Basis of Assessment
Evaluated over time through actions.
Can be immediate, based on first impressions.
Stability
Generally stable, changes with consistent actions.
Can change quickly with new information.
Role in Relationships
Essential for building long-term reliability.
Result of perceived trustworthiness.
Subjectivity/Objectivity
More objective, based on observable actions.
More subjective, influenced by feelings.
Compare with Definitions
Trustworthiness
Demonstrating honesty, consistency, and accountability in actions and behavior.
She proved her trustworthiness by always keeping her promises and being transparent in her dealings.
Trust
Belief in the honesty and competence of individuals or institutions.
Investors placed their trust in the company's management to make sound financial decisions.
Trustworthiness
Reliability and integrity in fulfilling commitments or responsibilities.
His consistent honesty and reliability earned him a reputation for trustworthiness among his colleagues.
Trust
Firm belief in the integrity, ability, or character of a person or thing; confidence or reliance
Trying to gain our clients' trust.
Taking it on trust that our friend is telling the truth.
Trustworthiness
Consistently demonstrating ethical behavior and adherence to principles.
The politician's unwavering commitment to integrity and ethical conduct showcased his trustworthiness to the public.
Trust
The condition and resulting obligation of having confidence placed in one
Violated a public trust.
Trustworthiness
The quality of being dependable and worthy of confidence.
The company's long history of delivering quality products has established its trustworthiness in the market.
Trust
One in which confidence is placed.
Trustworthiness
The ability to be relied upon and counted on to act in a reliable manner.
His track record of fulfilling obligations without fail highlights his trustworthiness in professional relationships.
Trust
Custody; care
Left her papers in my trust during her illness.
Trustworthiness
Warranting trust; reliable.
Trust
Something committed into the care of another; a charge
Violated a public trust.
Trustworthiness
The state or quality of being trustworthy or reliable.
Trust
Reliance on something in the future; hope
We have trust that the future will be better.
Trustworthiness
The trait of deserving trust and confidence
Trust
Reliance on the intention and ability of a purchaser to pay in the future; credit
Bought the supplies on trust from a local dealer.
Trust
A legal relationship in which one party holds a title to property while another party has the entitlement to the beneficial use of that property.
Trust
The confidence reposed in a trustee when giving the trustee legal title to property to administer for another, together with the trustee's obligation regarding that property and the beneficiary.
Trust
The property so held.
Trust
An institution or organization directed by trustees
A charitable trust.
Trust
A combination of firms or corporations for the purpose of reducing competition and controlling prices throughout a business or industry.
Trust
To have or place confidence in; depend on
Only trusted his friends.
Did not trust the strength of the thin rope.
Could not be trusted to oversee so much money.
Trust
To have confidence in allowing (someone) to use, know, or look after something
Can I trust you with a secret?.
Trust
To expect with assurance; assume
I trust that you will be on time.
Trust
To give credence to; believe
I trust what you say.
Trust
To place in the care of another person or in a situation deemed safe; entrust
"the unfortunate souls who trusted their retirement savings to the stock" (Bill Barnhart).
Trust
To extend credit to.
Trust
To have or place reliance; depend
We can only trust in our guide's knowledge of the terrain.
Trust
To be confident; hope.
Trust
Confidence in or reliance on some person or quality.
He needs to regain her trust if he is ever going to win her back.
To lose trust in someone
Build up trust
A relationship built on mutual trust
Trust
Dependence upon something in the future; hope.
Trust
Confidence in the future payment for goods or services supplied; credit.
I was out of cash, but the landlady let me have it on trust.
Trust
That which is committed or entrusted; something received in confidence; a charge.
Trust
That upon which confidence is reposed; ground of reliance; hope.
Trust
(rare) Trustworthiness, reliability.
Trust
The condition or obligation of one to whom anything is confided; responsible charge or office.
Trust
(legal) The confidence vested in a person who has legal ownership of a property to manage for the benefit of another.
I put the house into my sister's trust.
Trust
(legal) An arrangement whereby property or money is given to be held by a third party (a trustee), on the basis that it will be managed for the benefit of, or eventually transferred to, a stated beneficiary; for example, money to be given to a child when he or she reaches adulthood.
Trust
A group of businessmen or traders organised for mutual benefit to produce and distribute specific commodities or services, and managed by a central body of trustees.
Trust
(computing) Affirmation of the access rights of a user of a computer system.
Trust
(transitive) To place confidence in, to rely on, to confide in.
We cannot trust anyone who deceives us.
Trust
To have faith in; to rely on for continuing support or aid.
Trust
(transitive) To give credence to; to believe; to credit.
Trust
(transitive) To hope confidently; to believe (usually with a phrase or infinitive clause as the object)
I trust you have cleaned your room?
Trust
(transitive) to show confidence in a person by entrusting them with something.
Trust
(transitive) To commit, as to one's care; to entrust.
Trust
(transitive) To give credit to; to sell to upon credit, or in confidence of future payment.
Merchants and manufacturers trust their customers annually with goods.
Trust
To rely on (something), as though having trust (on it).
To trust to luck
Having lost the book, he had to trust to his memory for further details.
Trust
To risk; to venture confidently.
Trust
(intransitive) To have trust; to be credulous; to be won to confidence; to confide.
Trust
To sell or deliver anything in reliance upon a promise of payment; to give credit.
Trust
(obsolete) Secure, safe.
Trust
(obsolete) Faithful, dependable.
Trust
(legal) of or relating to a trust.
Trust
Assured resting of the mind on the integrity, veracity, justice, friendship, or other sound principle, of another person; confidence; reliance; reliance.
Most take things upon trust.
Trust
Credit given; especially, delivery of property or merchandise in reliance upon future payment; exchange without immediate receipt of an equivalent; as, to sell or buy goods on trust.
Trust
Assured anticipation; dependence upon something future or contingent, as if present or actual; hope; belief.
His trust was with the Eternal to be deemedEqual in strength.
Trust
That which is committed or intrusted to one; something received in confidence; charge; deposit.
Trust
The condition or obligation of one to whom anything is confided; responsible charge or office.
[I] serve him truly that will put me in trust.
Reward them well, if they observe their trust.
Trust
That upon which confidence is reposed; ground of reliance; hope.
O Lord God, thou art my trust from my youth.
Trust
An estate devised or granted in confidence that the devisee or grantee shall convey it, or dispose of the profits, at the will, or for the benefit, of another; an estate held for the use of another; a confidence respecting property reposed in one person, who is termed the trustee, for the benefit of another, who is called the cestui que trust.
Trust
An equitable right or interest in property distinct from the legal ownership thereof; a use (as it existed before the Statute of Uses); also, a property interest held by one person for the benefit of another. Trusts are active, or special, express, implied, constructive, etc. In a passive trust the trustee simply has title to the trust property, while its control and management are in the beneficiary.
Trust
A business organization or combination consisting of a number of firms or corporations operating, and often united, under an agreement creating a trust (in sense 1), esp. one formed mainly for the purpose of regulating the supply and price of commodities, etc.; often, opprobriously, a combination formed for the purpose of controlling or monopolizing a trade, industry, or business, by doing acts in restraint or trade; as, a sugar trust. A trust may take the form of a corporation or of a body of persons or corporations acting together by mutual arrangement, as under a contract or a so-called gentlemen's agreement. When it consists of corporations it may be effected by putting a majority of their stock either in the hands of a board of trustees (whence the name trust for the combination) or by transferring a majority to a holding company. The advantages of a trust are partly due to the economies made possible in carrying on a large business, as well as the doing away with competition. In the United States severe statutes against trusts have been passed by the Federal government and in many States, with elaborate statutory definitions.
Trust
Held in trust; as, trust property; trustmoney.
Trust
To place confidence in; to rely on, to confide, or repose faith, in; as, we can not trust those who have deceived us.
I will never trust his word after.
He that trusts every one without reserve will at last be deceived.
Trust
To give credence to; to believe; to credit.
Trust me, you look well.
Trust
To hope confidently; to believe; - usually with a phrase or infinitive clause as the object.
I trust to come unto you, and speak face to face.
We trustwe have a good conscience.
Trust
To show confidence in a person by intrusting (him) with something.
Whom, with your power and fortune, sir, you trust,Now to suspect is vain.
Trust
To commit, as to one's care; to intrust.
Merchants were not willing to trust precious cargoes to any custody but that of a man-of-war.
Trust
To give credit to; to sell to upon credit, or in confidence of future payment; as, merchants and manufacturers trust their customers annually with goods.
Trust
To risk; to venture confidently.
[Beguiled] by theeto trust thee from my side.
Trust
To have trust; to be credulous; to be won to confidence; to confide.
More to know could not be more to trust.
Trust
To be confident, as of something future; to hope.
I will trust and not be afraid.
Trust
To sell or deliver anything in reliance upon a promise of payment; to give credit.
It is happier sometimes to be cheated than not to trust.
Her widening streets on new foundations trust.
They trusted unto the liers in wait.
Trust
Something (as property) held by one party (the trustee) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary);
He is the beneficiary of a generous trust set up by his father
Trust
Certainty based on past experience;
He wrote the paper with considerable reliance on the work of other scientists
He put more trust in his own two legs than in the gun
Trust
The trait of trusting; of believing in the honesty and reliability of others;
The experience destroyed his trust and personal dignity
Trust
A consortium of independent organizations formed to limit competition by controlling the production and distribution of a product or service;
They set up the trust in the hope of gaining a monopoly
Trust
Complete confidence in a person or plan etc;
He cherished the faith of a good woman
The doctor-patient relationship is based on trust
Trust
A trustful relationship;
He took me into his confidence
He betrayed their trust
Trust
Have confidence or faith in;
We can trust in God
Rely on your friends
Bank on your good education
I swear by my grandmother's recipes
Trust
Allow without fear
Trust
Be confident about something;
I believe that he will come back from the war
Trust
Expect and wish;
I trust you will behave better from now on
I hope she understands that she cannot expect a raise
Trust
Confer a trust upon;
The messenger was entrusted with the general's secret
I commit my soul to God
Trust
Extend credit to
Trust
Confidence in the reliability, integrity, and intentions of others.
Their longstanding friendship was built on a foundation of mutual trust and understanding.
Trust
A willingness to be vulnerable and rely on the integrity of another person or entity.
Their open communication and shared values fostered a strong sense of trust in their relationship.
Trust
The expectation that others will act in a manner consistent with one's best interests.
Teamwork requires trust among members to collaborate effectively and achieve common goals.
Trust
Reliance on the character and intentions of someone or something.
The success of the project hinged on the trust placed in the expertise of the project manager.
Common Curiosities
What is trustworthiness?
Trustworthiness is the quality of being reliable, honest, and dependable.
Is trustworthiness inherent or developed?
Trustworthiness can be inherent but is mostly developed through consistent and honest behavior.
How can trust be regained once broken?
Regaining trust requires consistent demonstration of trustworthiness and accountability for past actions.
What is trust?
Trust is the belief or confidence in the reliability and integrity of someone or something.
How does trustworthiness affect trust?
Trustworthiness builds and maintains trust; without it, trust can diminish.
How is trustworthiness measured?
Trustworthiness is often measured by observing reliability, ethical behavior, and integrity over time.
Can trust exist without trustworthiness?
Trust might initially exist without trustworthiness, but it is likely to erode without a foundation of reliability.
What are the signs of a trustworthy person?
Signs include consistent honesty, reliability, and ethical behavior.
How do cultural differences affect perceptions of trust and trustworthiness?
Cultural norms and values can shape what behaviors are considered trustworthy or how trust is built.
Why is trust important in relationships?
Trust is crucial for the stability and emotional security of relationships.
How can organizations demonstrate trustworthiness?
Organizations can demonstrate trustworthiness through transparent practices and consistent adherence to ethical standards.
What factors destroy trustworthiness?
Dishonesty, inconsistency, and unethical actions can destroy trustworthiness.
What role does trust play in leadership?
In leadership, trust fosters follow-through, loyalty, and openness among team members.
How does trust influence decision-making?
Trust influences decision-making by allowing reliance on others' judgments and actions.
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Written by
Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Co-written by
Maham Liaqat