critic

[krit-ik]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR critic ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who judges, evaluates, or criticizes: a poor critic of men.

a person who judges, evaluates, or analyzes literary or artistic works, dramatic or musical performances, or the like, especially for a newspaper or magazine.

a person who tends too readily to make captious, trivial, or harsh judgments; faultfinder.

Archaic.

criticism.
critique.

Nearby words

Origin of critic

1575–85; < Latin criticus < Greek kritikós skilled in judging (adj.), critic (noun), equivalent to krī́t(ēs) judge, umpire (krī́(nein) to separate, decide + -tēs agent suffix) + -ikos -ic

SYNONYMS FOR critic

2. reviewer, judge. 3. censurer, carper.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR critic ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formssu·per·crit·ic, noun

Can be confusedcritic criticism critique

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for critic

“Every critic encounters one book like that,” was his reply.
A Novel Nearly Impossible to Review|Nicholas Mancusi|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But back in the 1990s, that usually took the form of fighting corporate welfare, of which he was an early GOP critic.
John Kasich: The GOP’s Hobbled 2016 Dark Horse|W. James Antle III|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Literary pedigree is or should be a valid concern for any writer or for any critic considering that writer.
Compliments Are Nice, but Enough With the Cormac McCarthy Comparisons|William Giraldi|October 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This was the Coltrane “sheets of sound” period (a phrase originated by critic Ira Gitler).
The Stacks: John Coltrane’s Mighty Musical Quest|Nat Hentoff|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“She follows the war and makes it very much into her business,” noted the critic Harold Bloom.
Brecht's Mercenary Mother Courage Turns 75|Katie Baker|September 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A critic of the highest order is provided with an Ithuriel spear, which discriminates the sham sentiments from the true.
Hours in a Library, Volume I. (of III.)|Leslie Stephen
Mr. Martin is generally thought of as a critic of social rather than political conditions.
Literature in the Making|Various
Again, there was one French critic who took a more singular way still of expressing his opinion.
Their Majesties' Servants (Volume 3 of 3)|John Doran
One can scarce (scarcely) help smiling at the blindness of this critic.
Practical Exercises in English|Huber Gray Buehler
Long before the critic can pronounce upon its merits, it will be found in the hands of thousands.
The Continental Monthly, Volume V. Issue I|Various

British Dictionary definitions for critic

critic

noun

a person who judges something

a professional judge of art, music, literature, etc

a person who often finds fault and criticizes

Word Origin for critic

C16: from Latin criticus, from Greek kritikos capable of judging, from kritēs judge; see criterion

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for critic

critic

1580s, "one who passes judgment," from Middle French critique (14c.), from Latin criticus "a judge, literary critic," from Greek kritikos "able to make judgments," from krinein "to separate, decide" (see crisis). Meaning "one who judges merits of books, plays, etc." is from c.1600. The English word always had overtones of "censurer, faultfinder."

To understand how the artist felt, however, is not criticism; criticism is an investigation of what the work is good for. ... Criticism ... is a serious and public function; it shows the race assimilating the individual, dividing the immortal from the mortal part of a soul. [George Santayana, "The Life of Reason," 1906]

A perfect judge will read each work of wit
With the same spirit that its author writ;
[Pope, "An Essay on Criticism," 1709]