cynicism

CEFRC2

/ˈsɪn.ɪˌsɪzəm/

noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    The belief that people are mainly selfish and dishonest.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A scornfully pessimistic comment or act.

Examples

  • Cynicism is just a mean way to tell the truth.

  • Sarcasm should not be confused with cynicism.

At a glance

Sits at C2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. An emotion of jaded negativity, or a general distrust of the integrity or professed motives of others, due to belief that people are motivated solely by disguised self-interest.

  2. A distrustful attitude.

  3. A school of thought in the philosophy of Ancient Greece.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

Years of broken promises turned his optimism into bitter blank.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From Cynicism, cynic + -ism; compare cynism.