negativism

[ neg-uh-ti-viz-uhm ]
See synonyms for negativism on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a negative or pessimistic attitude.

  2. Psychology. a tendency to resist external commands, suggestions, or expectations, or internal stimuli, as hunger, by doing nothing or something contrary or unrelated to the stimulus.

  1. any system of negative philosophy, as agnosticism or skepticism.

Origin of negativism

1
First recorded in 1815–25; negative + -ism

Other words from negativism

  • neg·a·tiv·ist, noun
  • neg·a·tiv·is·tic, adjective
  • non·neg·a·tiv·ism, noun
  • non·neg·a·tiv·is·tic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for negativism

negativism

/ (ˈnɛɡətɪvˌɪzəm) /


noun
  1. a tendency to be or a state of being unconstructively critical

  2. any sceptical or derisive system of thought

  1. psychiatry refusal to do what is expected or suggested or the tendency to do the opposite

Derived forms of negativism

  • negativist, noun, adjective
  • negativistic, 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