cynical
- 1Quick to doubt that other people are honest or really want to help.
Like thinking a free gift must be a trick.
He's so cynical that he thinks every salesperson is lying to him.
Don't be cynical. Maybe she really does want to help you move.
Similarskeptical, suspicious, distrustful, doubtful, jaded
- 2Feeling bitter and tired of trusting people, and often making fun of things in a mean way.
After losing his job twice, he became cynical and laughed at anyone who talked about loyalty.
Her cynical jokes about love made the wedding toast feel a little sad.
Similarjaded, sardonic, sneering, scornful, mocking
Oppositeidealistic, earnest
Note
- 3Based on the idea that people only do things for selfish reasons.
He has a cynical view of the world and thinks nobody helps anyone for free.
Her cynical theory is that people only give to charity to look good.
Similarpessimistic, misanthropic, jaundiced
Oppositeidealistic, optimistic
Note
- 4Acting in a way that shows you do not care about what is right or fair.
It was a cynical move to raise prices right after the storm.
The player made a cynical foul to stop the other team from scoring.
Similarcalculating, unscrupulous, self-serving, opportunistic
Oppositeprincipled, scrupulous
Note
Less common meaning
- 5Looking like an angry dog showing its teeth, often because the face nerves are not working right.
Demetrius Attalicus studied the symptomatologies due to strictura cerebri, characterized by a cynical spasm of the facial nerve.
1986, Giuseppe Roccatagliata, A History of Ancient PsychiatryHere, cynical means making the face look like a snarling dog.Towards noon, he experienced convulsive movements; the extremities became stiff, the pulse extremely small, and he died during an attack of cynical spasm.
1818, Matthieu Joseph Bonaventure Orfila, A Treatise on MineralHere, cynical means pulling the face into a look like a snarling dog.Note
Practice
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Origin
This word comes from Latin "cynicus" (Cynic) plus "-al". It goes back to Ancient Greek "kunikos," meaning "doglike."