as in critics
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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Recent Examples of cynics
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
Travis Kelce knows what the cynics might think of his relationship with Taylor Swift — two of the most famous people in America just happen to match up perfectly?
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 12 Aug. 2025
Erudite cynics like Karl Rove have written that gerrymandering has been around as long as there have been politicians and districts and that public officials invariably become inured to their own hypocrisy.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 10 Aug. 2025
Smarmy cynics will call them foolish for their foolhardy ambitions.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 6 Jan. 2025
All one needs is to read the headlines today, 45 years down the road, to see that sometimes cynics have a point.
—George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
Into this void emerge the cynics and the snake-oil merchants, the dreamers, the circumventers, the guileful peddlers of One Weird Tricks.
—Charles C. W. Cooke, National Review, 16 Dec. 2024
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
Travis Kelce knows what the cynics might think of his relationship with Taylor Swift — two of the most famous people in America just happen to match up perfectly?
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 12 Aug. 2025
Erudite cynics like Karl Rove have written that gerrymandering has been around as long as there have been politicians and districts and that public officials invariably become inured to their own hypocrisy.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 10 Aug. 2025
Smarmy cynics will call them foolish for their foolhardy ambitions.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 6 Jan. 2025
All one needs is to read the headlines today, 45 years down the road, to see that sometimes cynics have a point.
—George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
Into this void emerge the cynics and the snake-oil merchants, the dreamers, the circumventers, the guileful peddlers of One Weird Tricks.
—Charles C. W. Cooke, National Review, 16 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cynics
Noun
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Horvath, 43, has been one of the mayor’s most outspoken critics over the past year, assailing her record on homelessness and last year’s Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead.—
David Zahniser,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
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But research from both academics and conservative groups suggests removing undocumented immigrants from the census would shift only a handful of seats — not the sweeping advantage critics claim.—
Christian Datoc,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Feb. 2026
Noun
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These naysayers imply that Boca is wrapped in some sort of grand conspiracy because the city considers, subject to public vote, a new source of additional revenue measuring in the billions of dollars while improving our downtown.—
Marc Wigder,
Sun Sentinel,
3 Feb. 2026
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Yet naysayers should take heed that this silhouette is very much here to stay.—
Andrea Bossi,
Refinery29,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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And in recent weeks, AI bubble pessimists have rallied around Michael Burry, the hedge-fund investor who made hundreds of millions of dollars betting against the housing market in 2008.—
Bobby Allyn,
NPR,
23 Nov. 2025
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While optimistic economists argue that America can grow its way out of a debt crisis, pessimists believe the real outcome will be somewhat less popular.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
17 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cynics.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cynics. Accessed 8 Feb. 2026.
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