cynic

[sin-ik]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cynic ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who believes that only selfishness motivates human actions and who disbelieves in or minimizes selfless acts or disinterested points of view.

(initial capital letter) one of a sect of Greek philosophers, 4th century b.c., who advocated the doctrines that virtue is the only good, that the essence of virtue is self-control, and that surrender to any external influence is beneath human dignity.

a person who shows or expresses a bitterly or sneeringly cynical attitude.

adjective

cynical.

(initial capital letter) Also Cynical. of or relating to the Cynics or their doctrines.

Medicine/Medical Now Rare. resembling the actions of a snarling dog.

Origin of cynic

1540–50; < LatinCynicus < Greek Kynikós Cynic, literally, doglike, currish, equivalent to kyn- (stem of kýōn) dog + -ikos -ic

Related formsan·ti·cyn·ic, noun, adjective

Can be confusedcynic optimist pessimist skeptic

Synonyms for cynic

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cynic ON THESAURUS.COM

1, 3. skeptic, pessimist, misanthrope.

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

Related Words for cynic

skeptic, doubter, pessimist, detractor, unbeliever, questioner, misanthropist, caviler, misanthrope, carper, egoist, misogynist, egotist, misogamist, mocker, scoffer, satirist

Examples from the Web for cynic

Contemporary Examples of cynic

You, dear reader and refusenik, will likely be called a cynic or a sad sack by friends.
The Refuseniks Hiding From ‘Happy New Year’
Lizzie Crocker
December 31, 2014
A cynic might say that the report is like the movie Clue, perfectly set up for a multiplicity of endings.
New York’s Conservative Fracking Ban
Jay Michaelson
December 20, 2014
Putin, after all, is not the only cynic on center stage in the Ukraine crisis.
Putin Can Take Ukraine Without an Invasion, and Probably Will
Jamie Dettmer
April 12, 2014
At her core as both a mother and a politician was a guiding emotion that would make a cynic scoff.
Remembering Ma Laureys, the Mother of 10 Christie Slandered to Win His First Election
Michael Daly
January 23, 2014
Distrustful of engaging fully, the cynic engages superficially, gets the drug he needs, and moves along.
Boys Don’t Cry: In Praise of Sentiment
Andrew Sean Greer
June 26, 2013

Historical Examples of cynic

It was composed of a few overturned omnibuses; for the true Parisian is a cynic.
The Slave Of The Lamp
Henry Seton Merriman
One may be a cynic; nevertheless that sort of music soon upsets one's stomach.
L'Assommoir
Emile Zola
A cynic sends us a tip for the recruiting department of our army.
Punch or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, November 25, 1914
Various
In 1783 he died the death of Diogenes, minus the wit of the cynic.
The Memoires of Casanova, Complete
Jacques Casanova de Seingalt
Suppose he is a cynic, it is to his interest to govern well.
The Napoleon of Notting Hill
Gilbert K. Chesterton

British Dictionary definitions for cynic

cynic

noun

a person who believes the worst about people or the outcome of events

adjective

a less common word for cynical

astronomy of or relating to Sirius, the Dog Star

Word Origin for cynic

C16: via Latin from Greek Kunikos, from kuōn dog

Cynic

noun

a member of a sect founded by Antisthenes that scorned worldly things and held that self-control was the key to the only good

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 cynic

mid-16c., in reference to the ancient philosophy, from Greek kynikos "a follower of Antisthenes," literally "dog-like," from kyon (genitive kynos) "dog" (see canine). Supposedly from the sneering sarcasm of the philosophers, but more likely from Kynosarge "Gray Dog," name of the gymnasium outside ancient Athens (for the use of those who were not pure Athenians) where the founder, Antisthenes (a pupil of Socrates), taught. Diogenes was the most famous. Popular association even in ancient times was "dog-like" (Lucian has kyniskos "a little cynic," literally "puppy"). Meaning "sneering sarcastic person" is from 1590s.