defeatism

[ dih-fee-tiz-uh m ]

/ dɪˈfi tɪz əm /

SEE 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.

Words nearby defeatism

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. 2020

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 of defeatism

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

defeatism

noun

Words related to defeatism

Words nearby defeatism

Origin of defeatism

Examples from the Web for defeatism

British Dictionary definitions for defeatism

noun

Derived forms of defeatism