as in misanthrope
a person who distrusts other people and believes that everything is done for selfish reasons
a cynic who believes that nobody does a good deed without expecting something in return
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cynic
The dollar amount was chosen arbitrarily based on what voters might accept, and some cynics saw it as a move by a pro-development commission to cozy up to environmentalists.
—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
9 Mar. 2026
This is not a home for doomers, cynics, or know-it-alls.
—
Daphne Koller,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
The belief by cynics is that Netflix wants to be a streaming service.
—
Anthony D'alessandro,
Deadline,
26 Dec. 2025
On the other hand, skeptics and cynics tend to be insistent right now that the clean-up activity is not going to last very long.
—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cynic
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
9 Mar. 2026
This is not a home for doomers, cynics, or know-it-alls.
—
Daphne Koller,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
The belief by cynics is that Netflix wants to be a streaming service.
—
Anthony D'alessandro,
Deadline,
26 Dec. 2025
On the other hand, skeptics and cynics tend to be insistent right now that the clean-up activity is not going to last very long.
—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cynic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cynic
Noun
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Still, this misanthrope takes somewhat of a liking to Fiona (Florence Ordesh), the woman who shows him to his room and tends the hotel bar.
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The story follows a rag-tag group of misanthropes who attempt to rob jewels from the Vatican.
Noun
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The House passed a bipartisan package of children’s online safety bills in a 267-117 vote Monday, advancing legislation that supporters say would better protect children online but critics warn could threaten privacy and free expression.
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Guo Wengui, who fled China a decade ago and reinvented himself as a US -based Communist Party critic, was sentenced in a Manhattan courtroom packed with his supporters by Judge Analisa Torres.
Noun
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However, that’s looking at it from the pessimist’s point of view.
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Advertisement If Rogen was the optimist, did that make Wilde the pessimist?
Noun
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Whatever a naysayer of the sport in this country wants to say about it, professional soccer and expectations for the national teams are part of the American sports culture now.
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Forbes Senior Contributor David Nikel was among the cruise naysayers before setting sail on his first voyage.
Noun
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Among rarer varieties, Tavkveri deserves attention — a pale red from Kartli with spice, blue fruit and low alcohol around 12%, the kind of wine that converts skeptics without announcing itself.
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When the site went live in February 2011, skeptics weren’t hard to find.
Video
The History of 'Cynic'
How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.
Cite this Entry
“Cynic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cynic. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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