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
However, those cynics didn’t sound as enlightened when the Rockets were up 18 early in the fourth quarter Saturday night.
—
William Guillory, New York Times, 22 Feb. 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
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
William Guillory, New York Times, 22 Feb. 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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cynics
Noun
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Psycho Killer‘s current critics score on Rotten Tomatoes is zero from 21 reviews, including this review from The Hollywood Reporter.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Feb. 2026
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It was always accompanied by the language of critics and journalists.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
21 Feb. 2026
Noun
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While speaking about naysayers who have been taking to the internet to poke fun at Kelly's weight loss, Morgan shared a video that Kelly recently posted on social media in response.—
Tracy Wright,
FOXNews.com,
23 Feb. 2026
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In a city full of naysayers, Brunson somehow appears to have none at all.—
Tom Kludt,
Vanity Fair,
17 Feb. 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 1 Mar. 2026.
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