Oh my word Mistrust, Distrust

What is the opposite word for trust? Mistrust or distrust? The opposite of trust is distrust. The opposite of trustworthy is untrustworthy. Lack of trust in other person is distrust. Misplaced trust in other person is mistrust. Trusting each other in marriage is the defining trait: as the trust breaks down and the couple starts to distrust each other then marriage can break down. Because distrust comes from the experience! Unlike mistrust. When you rely on someone or something it is trust. Trust is a feeling that somebody or something can be relied upon.

Trust is the feeling of being sure about something. Trust cannot be proved but should be felt. Trust functions as the noun and a verb but trusting is an adjective. I have trust on my siblings that they will help me (noun). They trust the government that it will function transparently (verb). Trust from religious point of view means faith in God: In God We Trust.

Some dictionaries say distrust and mistrust are almost the same because both the words refer to lack of trust in someone or something, and to regard someone or something without trust. There is a slight difference between these two words: distrust could be based on experience or irrefutable e information (I started to distrust him because of my past experiences with him. They parted from each other as they started to distrust one another).

Mistrust is not believing in someone or something, having a sense of unease (The organisation distrusted the advice of the consultancy, because it had consulted it in the past and its advice was incorrect. The organisation ended up mistrusting in another firm). “He had looked upon these with mistrust, as if their destiny was to be penetrated and destroyed by thought, since material things were not essential to existence, the essence of which lay beyond, on the other side of what was visible.” –Siddharatha by Hermann Hesse

Distrust is the commonly used word, and many use it interchangeably as there is little difference between the two. In fact some dictionaries mention them as synonyms. Distrustful and mistrustful are the adjectival forms followed by the preposition of. India and Pakistan are distrustful of each other. India mistrusted China that it will not invade India when Pt Jawaharlal Nehru was the Prime Minister. Adults mistrust the strangers especially while on train journeys. “I am a poet. I distrust anything that starts with a capital letter.” –Antjie Krog Kovuuri G. Reddy