defeatism

[ dih-fee-tiz-uh m ]

/ dɪˈfi tɪz əm /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR defeatism ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the attitude, policy, or conduct of a person who admits, expects, or no longer resists defeat, as because of a conviction that further struggle or effort is futile; pessimistic resignation.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

defcon, defeasance, defease, defeasible, defeat, defeatism, defeatist, defeature, defecate, defect, defectible

Origin of defeatism

1915–20; defeat + -ism, modeled on French défaitisme

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

Examples from the Web for defeatism

Third, pulling out before any real efforts have been tried sends a message of hopelessness and defeatism more than anything else.
Livni's Ill-Advised Threat Against Bibi|Brent E. Sasley|June 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It was a country that had succumbed to paralysis and defeatism and nostalgia.
How Margaret Thatcher Saved Britain and Changed the World|David Frum|April 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It seems at this point that dysfunction and defeatism are institutionally baked into the culture of the team.
Washington’s True Dysfunction: Basketball’s Woeful Wizards|Lloyd Grove|November 28, 2012|DAILY BEAST
For decades since, Britain has exercised its political resentments in the defeatism of the sporting field.
Take a Bow, London: The Olympics Were a Triumph|Peter Jukes|August 13, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Even the Taliban picked it up as a supposed sign of American defeatism.
Inside Holbrooke's War With the White House|The Daily Beast|January 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Some in our midst have sought to instill a feeling of fear and defeatism in the minds of the American people about this problem.
State of the Union Addresses of Franklin D. Roosevelt|Franklin D. Roosevelt
But not because of any anti-life attitude, or pessimism, or defeatism.
The Victor|Bryce Walton
The army was demoralized and saturated with the defeatism preached by the Porazhentsi.
Bolshevism|John Spargo
To face the task of finding jobs faster than invention can take them away--is not defeatism.
State of the Union Addresses of Franklin D. Roosevelt|Franklin D. Roosevelt

British Dictionary definitions for defeatism

defeatism

/ (dɪˈfiːtɪzəm) /

noun

a ready acceptance or expectation of defeat

Derived Forms

defeatist, noun, adjective

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