as in ironical
having or showing a deep distrust of human beings and their motives
so cynical that he can't understand why anyone would volunteer to help out at a homeless shelter
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Recent Examples of cynical
Overall, the movie felt cynical about matchmaking, sure, but especially about single people.
—
Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 20 June 2025
Lucy’s journey takes too many cynical turns to be satisfying, and the film’s ideas are too scattershot to be convincing.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 20 June 2025
The cynical side of Amy wonders if her aunt feared their presence could damage a future run for city alderwoman.
—Jayme Fraser, USA Today, 16 June 2025
Lucy is depicted as cynical, becoming jaded and rethinking her future as a matchmaker.
—Benjamin Vanhoose, People.com, 15 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for cynical
Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 20 June 2025
Lucy’s journey takes too many cynical turns to be satisfying, and the film’s ideas are too scattershot to be convincing.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 20 June 2025
The cynical side of Amy wonders if her aunt feared their presence could damage a future run for city alderwoman.
—Jayme Fraser, USA Today, 16 June 2025
Lucy is depicted as cynical, becoming jaded and rethinking her future as a matchmaker.
—Benjamin Vanhoose, People.com, 15 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for cynical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cynical
Adjective
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The term has moved from being a literal reference to a livestream audience to a kind of ironic nickname for your friends—or anyone watching you in the moment.—
Annabelle Canela,
Parents,
23 June 2025
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Others called the policy ironic, noting that most low-income residents still can’t afford electric vehicles — so the discount may go largely unused.—
Tina Li,
Sacbee.com,
20 June 2025
Adjective
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His father, observing his children’s unconventional career choices, eventually developed his own sarcastic advice for parents.—
Omaid Homayun,
Forbes.com,
24 June 2025
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Idiotic rich boy Bertie Wooster gets himself into some kind of sticky situation with another rich idiot, and his quietly sarcastic, above-it-all, genius butler Jeeves inevitably gets him out of it.—
Brian Boone,
Vulture,
18 June 2025
Adjective
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The survey — which sampled 1,265 registered voters June 5-9 — also found that Americans are pessimistic about the likelihood that a ceasefire will be achieved soon.—
Brendan Rascius,
Miami Herald,
12 June 2025
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Pessimism — and yet hope Altogether, the administration's actions — and pledges to cut funding for NIH grants by more than 40% next year — have many researchers pessimistic about the prospects of developing an HIV vaccine anytime soon.—
Jonathan Lambert,
NPR,
10 June 2025
Adjective
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The Trump administration crafted the new proclamation to overcome legal challenges and negative news stories.—
Stuart Anderson,
Forbes.com,
16 June 2025
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Father’s Day weekend was celebratory for some dads in the world, and negative for others.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
16 June 2025
Adjective
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Wood starred as hopeless romantic Chelsea, who was on vacation with her older, misanthropic boyfriend Rick (Walton Goggins).—
EW.com,
EW.com,
28 May 2025
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Brief yet dense and full of misanthropic humor, Portal holds the hell up nearly twenty years later.—
Joshua Rivera,
Vulture,
6 May 2025
Adjective
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Some employees are skeptical of the AI, especially following a Bloomberg report in January that predicted up to 200,000 jobs on Wall Street could be at risk within five years due to technologies like AI.—
Chris Morris,
Fortune,
24 June 2025
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But Israel will likely be skeptical of China’s neutrality as a mediator, analysts said, citing Beijing’s close ties with Iran and concerns about of provoking the Trump administration.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
23 June 2025
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
“Cynical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cynical. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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