pessimism

American  

[pes-uh-miz-uhm] / ˈpɛs əˌmɪz əm /

noun

1. the tendency to see, anticipate, or emphasize only bad or undesirable outcomes, results, conditions, problems, etc..

   His pessimism about the future of our country depresses me.

2. the doctrine that the existing world is the worst of all possible worlds, or that all things naturally tend to evil.

3. the belief that the evil and pain in the world are not compensated for by goodness and happiness.

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pessimism British  

/ ˈpɛsɪˌmɪzəm /

noun

1. the tendency to expect the worst and see the worst in all things

2. the doctrine of the ultimate triumph of evil over good

3. the doctrine that this world is corrupt and that man's sojourn in it is a preparation for some other existence

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Other Word Forms

• overpessimism noun
• pessimist noun
• pessimistic adjective
• pessimistically adverb

Etymology

Origin of pessimism

First recorded in 1785–95; from Latin pessim(us) “worst” (suppletive superlative of malus “bad”) + -ism; modeled on optimism ( def. )

Explanation

Pessimism means thinking the worst. It's the opposite of optimism, which means assuming the best. Most people feel that too much pessimism is paralyzing — who will ever try anything if they are always sure they will fail? Pessimism comes in two flavors. With one, you feel that something bad will happen. You feel pessimistic about the geometry final. How will you pass it? Pessimism is also the tendency to expect the worst in everything. A pessimist in love is a person sure that there must be something wrong with the person to love them back. A pessimist on an airplane is sure the plane is missing some essential part that won't be noticed until it plummets from the sky. Can pessimism be fun? Not really ever.

Example Sentences

With copper’s long-term uptrend intact and sentiment turning up from extreme pessimism, copper becomes a conditional confirmation test for the reopening theme.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

“We believe this combination of severe price compression, completely exhausted market breadth, and extreme pessimism is not a cause for panic, but rather a classic contrarian trading opportunity,” they wrote.

From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026

Microsoft’s stock is on pace for its worst quarterly performance since the financial crisis, underscoring the extent of investor pessimism around two of the company’s major businesses.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 25, 2026

His 1968 book, “The Population Bomb,” made him famous in an era of economic and political turmoil that led to public pessimism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

I had thought of all these possibilities and more, but never that of Rosa’s death, despite my proverbial pessimism, which always leads me to expect the worst.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

Related Words

• cynicism
• despair
• distrust
• gloom
• grief
• hopelessness
• melancholy
• sadness
• unhappiness