defeatist

[dih-fee-tist]

noun

1. a person who surrenders easily or is subject to defeatism.

2. an advocate or follower of defeatism as a public policy.

adjective

1. marked by defeatism.

Word History and Origins

Origin of defeatist¹

1915–20; defeat + -ist, modeled on French défaitiste

Example Sentences

This attempt to reassert the old order has been fractured, ineffective and at times defeatist, according to interviews with sources in or around the push to defeat Mamdani conducted over the months since the primary.

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The noises coming out of Old Trafford from Amorim and his players felt despondent and defeatist in the immediate aftermath of United's failure to reach the Champions League.

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Solomon: Well, certainly the money is huge, but we want to be realistic without being defeatists.

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The UK's never going to attract world-class talent if all we do is look down on the contest and approach it with a defeatist attitude.

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The prime minister accused her of being a "climate defeatist".

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Related Words

• cynic 
• worrier