complacency

com·pla·cen·cy

noun \kəm-ˈplā-s^ən(t)-sē\

plural com·pla·cen·cies

Definition of COMPLACENCY

1

: self-satisfaction especially when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies

2

: an instance of usually unaware or uninformed self-satisfaction

Examples of COMPLACENCY

1. The public was lulled into complacency.
2. <a momentary complacency that was quickly dispelled by the shock of cold reality>
3. He sees a dangerous sense of complacency about the U.S. stock market—where investors were emboldened after the 1998 downturn was followed by a resounding snapback. —Bernard Wysocki, Jr., Wall Street Journal, 3 Aug. 1999
4. He spoke, however, with resignation, even complacency, rather than anguish. —Harriet Ritvo, The Platypus and The Mermaid, 1997
5. … you say to yourself, “OK, why did it happen? Why did we make those bad engineering decisions we made in 1967 and 1986 with Challenger?” I'll tell you. It's the human element. And I suggest that there's a complacency there that comes from success. —Alan Shepard, Yankee, October 1991
6. Tony Brace lived in Richmond, in circumstances of impeccable domestic content. Matthew and Susan had visited, in the early days of their marriage; driving home, they had mocked the décor and the connubial complacency. —Penelope Lively, City Of The Mind, 1991

Origin of COMPLACENCY

(see complacent)

First Known Use: 1650

Related to COMPLACENCY

Synonyms

amour propre, bighead, complacence, conceit, conceitedness, ego, egotism, pomposity, pompousness, pride, pridefulness, self-admiration, self-assumption, self-conceit, self-congratulation, self-esteem, self-glory, self-importance, self-love, self-opinion, self-satisfaction, smugness, swelled head, swellheadedness, vaingloriousness, vainglory, vainness, vanity

Antonyms

humbleness, humility, modesty

Related Words

assurance, confidence, self-assurance, self-confidence; self-righteousness; arrogance, disdainfulness, haughtiness, imperiousness, lordliness, self-assertion, snobbishness, superciliousness, superiority; hubris, overconfidence, presumption; pretense (or pretence), pretension, pretentiousness; egoism, self-centeredness, selfishness; self-pride, self-respect

Near Antonyms

diffidence, self-doubt; self-disgust, self-hate, self-loathing; altruism, unselfishness; bashfulness, demureness, shyness, timidity, timidness; passiveness, passivity