cynical
Pronunciation
- /ˈsɪnɪkəl/[1]
Etymology
It is formed from English cynic + -al,[2][3][4][5] or, as the OED has it since its 2023 revision, from Latin cynicus (“of the Cynic philosophy; a Cynic”) with the English suffix.[6] The Latin word is from Ancient Greek κυνικός (kunikós, “doglike; a Cynic philosopher”),[6][7][8] from κύων (kúōn, “dog”),[6][7][9] from Proto-Indo-European *kwon- (“dog”),[7][2] the root of hound.[9] The Cynics were said to be named for their doglike, sneering manners, but Etymonline and Ayto think it more likely that the name comes from the Κυνόσαργες (Kunósarges), the gymnasium outside Athens where their founder Antisthenes taught, perhaps later associated with the word for dog.[2][9] Klein holds the dog explanation to be wrong.[8]
Earliest recorded meaning
Belonging to the school of the Cynic philosophers: 1542, in Nicholas Udall's translation of Erasmus's Apophthegmes.[6][4] Etymonline and Dictionary.com date the word only to the 1580s.[2][5]
Semantic evolution
From 1574 the adjective described people like the Cynics, who despised comfort and wealth and were scornfully critical of others,[6] and by the 1660s, now written with a small c, it had become the general “disposed to doubt the sincerity of others' motives and to sneer at them”.[2] The OED calls this “now especially” the main sense.[6] Two newer senses are recorded from 1835: doubtful of the worth or success of something, and self-serving, disregarding accepted standards to gain one's ends.[6] From 1559 to 1869 the word was also used, with reference to its Greek origin, to mean simply doglike.[6]
Timeline
- 1542 – of the Cynic philosophers.[6][4]
- 1559 – doglike (obsolete by the 19th century).[6]
- 1574 – scornfully critical, distrustful of others.[6]
- 1660s – the general sense, with a small c.[2]
- 1835 – doubtful of the value or success of something.[6]
- 1835 – self-serving, disregarding standards.[6]
Meanings
Adjective
- Believing that people are motivated only by self-interest; distrustful of human sincerity or goodness: Years in politics had made him cynical about promises.[10][4][6]
- Sarcastic or sneering; given to finding fault.[10][4]
- Doubtful that something is worthwhile or will succeed.[6]
- Showing contempt for accepted standards, especially of honesty or morality, for one's own advantage: a cynical attempt to buy votes.[10][6]
- (usually Cynical) Of or relating to the Cynic philosophers.[6][3]
Word family
- cynically
- cynicalness
- cynicism
- semicynical
- supercynical
- uncynical
Related words
Usage notes
The Century Dictionary, quoted by Etymonline, distinguished cynical, a perverse disposition to interpret conduct unfavourably, from misanthropic, hatred of mankind, and pessimistic, the philosophical view that things tend toward evil.[2]
References
- ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
- ^ a b c Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
- ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins