skepticism

or scep·ti·cism

[ skep-tuh-siz-uhm ]
See synonyms for skepticism on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. skeptical attitude or temper; doubt.

  2. doubt or unbelief with regard to a religion, especially Christianity.

  1. (initial capital letter) the doctrines or opinions of philosophical Skeptics; universal doubt.

Origin of skepticism

1
First recorded in 1640–50; from New Latin scepticismus; equivalent to skeptic + -ism

Other words for skepticism

Opposites for skepticism

Other words from skepticism

  • an·ti·skep·ti·cism, noun

Words Nearby skepticism

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use skepticism in a sentence

Cultural definitions for skepticism

skepticism

In philosophy, the position that what cannot be proved by reason should not be believed. One of the main tasks of epistemology is to find an answer to the charge of some extreme skeptics that no knowledge is possible.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.