pessimism

noun

pes·​si·​mism ˈpe-sə-ˌmi-zəm 

also ˈpe-zə-

1

: an inclination to emphasize adverse aspects, conditions, and possibilities or to expect the worst possible outcome

2

a

: the doctrine that reality is essentially evil

b

: the doctrine that evil overbalances happiness in life

Examples of pessimism in a Sentence

Although the economy shows signs of improving, a sense of pessimism remains.

Recent Examples on the Web

The pessimism exists for good reason, as Brazil’s journey to the World Cup was characterized by scandals off the pitch and underperformance on it. —Emile Nuh, CNN Money, 13 June 2026

Spielberg has worked through times of national pessimism and optimism in the course of the past half century. —Hannah Jocelyn, New Yorker, 11 June 2026

In fact, the views of the five England fans who spoke to The Athletic are dominated by clear-eyed realism and learned pessimism. —Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 10 June 2026

So much of the pessimism and the despair that fueled the piece has even greater purchase now. —Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 10 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French pessimisme, from Latin pessimus "worst" + French -isme -ism, formed by analogy with optimisme optimism; Latin pessimus, probably going back to *pedisamos, derivative (with -isamos, superlative suffix, going back to Italic & Celtic *-ism̥mos) of *ped-, extracted from *ped-tu- "a fall, falling" (whence Latin pessum "to the bottom, to destruction"), verbal noun from an Indo-European base *ped- "step, fall," whence, with varying ablaut grades, Old English gefetan "to fall," Old Church Slavic padǫ, pasti, Sanskrit padyate "(s/he) falls, perishes"

Note: The Indo-European verbal base *ped- is generally taken to be a derivative of the noun *pōd-, ped- "foot"; see foot entry 1.

First Known Use

1815, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pessimism

• autism
• fascism
• racism
• sikhism
• sophism
• statism
• sufism
• thomism
• tourism
• tropism
• abolitionism
• aldosteronism

Kids Definition

pessimism

noun

pes·​si·​mism ˈpes-ə-ˌmiz-əm 

1

: a tending to expect the worst possible outcome

2

: a belief that evil is more common than good in life

pessimist

-məst 

noun

Medical Definition

pessimism

noun

pes·​si·​mism

ˈpes-ə-ˌmiz-əm also ˈpez-

: an inclination to emphasize adverse aspects, conditions, and possibilities or to expect the worst possible outcome

pessimistic

ˌpes-ə-ˈmis-tik also ˌpez-

adjective