nihilistic

adjective

as in cynical

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of nihilistic There’s also a nihilistic tilt to singles off Charli’s new album Music, Fashion, Film. — Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 23 July 2026 But there was this paradox in this basic idea that this menacing, nihilistic person [Nile Jarvis] actually infuses her with life. — Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 15 June 2026 Investigators are continuing to build a picture of the two suspects in the deadly Monday shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego which killed three people, and which law enforcement officials say may have been driven by nihilistic and accelerationist extremism. — Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 20 May 2026 Looksmaxxing embraces superficiality and body dysmorphia, an alarmingly nihilistic online trend that prioritizes physical attractiveness above all else. — Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 17 May 2026 People were getting tired of dark, nihilistic films. — Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 16 May 2026 In season three, this argument has largely taken a cynical, nihilistic turn. — The Editors, Vulture, 16 May 2026 This Man on Fire isn’t designed to be a complex, brutal, nihilistic portrait of vigilantism and violence. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 30 Apr. 2026 Margo’s Got Money Troubles premiered the same week as the third season of HBO’s nihilistic teen drama Euphoria, in which Sydney Sweeney’s dead-eyed Cassie has taken to the popular subscription service, dressing up as a seductive puppy and even a pacifier-sucking baby. — Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nihilistic
  1. cynical
  2. fatalistic
  3. nihilist
  4. pessimistic
Adjective
  • Tentpoles with integrity will be especially important as generative AI makes the industry’s appetite for replicable content more cynical by the day.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 26 July 2026
  • In its portrayal of cross-gender relations, the series is consistently cruel to women, insulting to men, empathetic toward nobody and cynical about everything.
    — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 22 July 2026
Definition of cynical
Adjective
  • The mystery character, played by Sadie Sink, is also dealing with her own demons of loss and fatalistic desperation.
    — Laura Sirikul, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026
  • But her grandfather Andrew Viterbi had a very different perspective, somewhere between fatalistic and hopeful.
    — Felicia Feaster, AJC.com, 27 July 2026
Definition of fatalistic
Adjective
  • Advertisement Just as Nietzsche warned of the dangers of a nihilist moral void leading to societal decay, the current disregard for responsible data practices could erode trust in institutions and perpetuate systemic inequalities.
    — Alice Xiang, Time, 6 May 2026
  • Our impressively multicultural team of street racers now freelance in the shadowy and complex world of covert ops, jetting around the world to take down an increasingly unhinged array of nihilist supervillains.
    — Hua Hsu, New Yorker, 29 Apr. 2026
Definition of nihilist
Adjective
  • The findings reflect a deeply pessimistic economic mood as the country heads to the November midterm elections.
    — Emily Guskin, ABC News, 29 July 2026
  • Write-in responses to the survey, which were collected from July 1 to July 22, remained pessimistic.
    — Matt Ott, Fortune, 29 July 2026
Definition of pessimistic

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Cite this Entry

“Nihilistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nihilistic. Accessed 1 Aug. 2026.

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