self-effacement

[ self-i-feys-muhnt, self- ]

noun

1. the act or fact of keeping oneself in the background, as in humility.

self-effacement

noun

1. the act of making oneself, one's actions, etc, inconspicuous, esp because of humility or timidity

Other Words From

• self-ef·facing adjective
• self-ef·facing·ly adverb
• self-ef·facing·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of self-effacement¹

First recorded in 1865–70