pessimism

noun pes·si·mism \ ˈpe-sə-ˌmi-zəm also ˈpe-zə- \

|Updated on: 21 Aug 2018

Examples: pessimism in a Sentence

Definition of pessimism

1 : an inclination to emphasize adverse aspects, conditions, and possibilities or to expect the worst possible outcome

2 a : the doctrine that reality is essentially evil

b : the doctrine that evil overbalances happiness in life

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Examples of pessimism in a Sentence

Although the economy shows signs of improving, a sense of pessimism remains.

Recent Examples of pessimism from the Web

Get our daily newsletter This pessimism should be put in context.

— The Economist, "Lessons from the rise of strongmen in weak states," 14 June 2018
There is something about market pessimism that endows bears with an aura of wisdom that is not always deserved.

— The Economist, "Even stockmarket bulls are more cautious than at the start of the year," 12 July 2018
Sure, there remained some of that hard-wired English pessimism: This is infamously a national team with heartbreak baked into the recipe, and Croatia was not going to be an easy out.

— jason gay, WSJ, "A Night on the Verge in London," 11 July 2018
Anti-government conservatives had long feared that democracy would facilitate the many to confiscate the resources of the few; meanwhile demographic change has overlaid a parallel ethnic pessimism.

— jonathan chait, Daily Intelligencer, "The Anti-Trump Right Has Become Trump’s Base," 3 July 2018
Line, Japans biggest messaging service, is opening a cryptocurrency exchange next month even amid Bitcoin selloff thats fueled pessimism over the future of virtual currencies.

— lucinda shen, Fortune, "This App With 200 Million Users Is Launching a Cryptocurrency Exchange," 28 June 2018
The Russians extended their winless streak with a 1-1 draw against Turkey on Monday, increasing the doubt and pessimism surrounding their chances on home soil.

— juan pimiento, chicagotribune.com, "Mexico's partying scandal, the Argentina-Israel controversy and the best of the week in soccer," 7 June 2018
As the Azzurri opened their tournament with a resounding 2-0 win over Ghana, pre-tournament doubt and pessimism swiftly returned after an underwhelming draw with the United States.

— SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: 3 Weeks To Go - When Italy Ruled in 2006 in the Face of Domestic Turmoil," 4 June 2018
This is a time for celebration and excitement, not pragmatic pessimism.

— james sexton, Time, "When Should You Start Talking About Divorce? Right After You Get Engaged," 8 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pessimism.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of pessimism

borrowed from French pessimisme, from Latin pessimus "worst" + French -isme -ism, formed by analogy with optimisme optimism; Latin pessimus, probably going back to *pedisamos, derivative (with -isamos, superlative suffix, going back to Italic & Celtic *-ism̥mos) of *ped-, extracted from *ped-tu- "a fall, falling" (whence Latin pessum "to the bottom, to destruction"), verbal noun from an Indo-European base *ped- "step, fall," whence, with varying ablaut grades, Old English gefetan "to fall," Old Church Slavic padǫ, pasti, Sanskrit padyate "(s/he) falls, perishes"

Note: The Indo-European verbal base *ped- is generally taken to be a derivative of the noun *pōd-, ped- "foot"; see ¹foot.

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1815

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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