as in hopeless
emphasizing or expecting the worst
your defeatist attitude is depressing everyone else on the team!
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in realist
one who emphasizes bad aspects or conditions and expects the worst
we told her that if she was going to be such a defeatist, she should keep her thoughts to herself
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defeatist
Adjective
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All seemed hopeless for Moore and Mansell, until, out of the blue, a lawyer with the Office of the White House Counsel contacted Moore’s defense lawyers, Seitles and Litwin-Diego, in April to inquire about the case.—
Jay Weaver,
Miami Herald,
30 May 2025 -
The longtime psych-rock staple co-wrote the album with filmmaker Matt Yoka to be a collection of American stories about hopeless kleptomaniacs, urban explorers, and other people who slip through the cracks.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
30 May 2025
Noun
-
During an intermission at the Tallinn opera, an older Estonian man caught me staring up at the sprawling, Soviet-era socialist realist ceiling mural, which depicts Communism triumphant.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
7 May 2025
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Spanning nearly two decades of work, the exhibition, currently on view at The Whitney Museum of American Art is an assemblage of close to 50 portraits that reimagine the American realist tradition by centering Black subjects in moments of stillness, style, and sovereign presence.—
Najha Zigbi-Johnson,
Essence,
30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The British showrunner of that blisteringly cynical drama spent five years and 39 episodes giving us a portrait of filthy rich people pulling strings and behaving badly.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
31 May 2025
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But the message at the heart of Isle of Dogs, that saving others is the only way to save one’s self, is enough to turn the most cynical viewer into a believer—and maybe even a dog lover.—
Shannon Carlin,
Time,
30 May 2025
Noun
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Similarly to her dad, Abby tries to bring order to her crew of oddballs and cynics, most notably former night court prosecutor Dan Fielding (John Larroquette), a character from the original series.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
9 May 2025
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Abdellatif Kechiche’s 2013 graphic lesbian love story Blue Is the Warmest Color confounded cynics by winning over a jury headed by, of all people, Steven Spielberg.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
14 May 2025
Adjective
-
Democrats in March hit an all-time low in polling and remain pessimistic about the party’s future, according to a new survey this month.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
The Washington Examiner,
29 May 2025
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Unlike many pessimistic voices, Bocco refused to concede that theatrical is becoming a niche business that exists to feed streaming.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
29 May 2025
Noun
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In contrast, pessimists often miss opportunities by holding cash.—
Michael Khouw,
CNBC,
14 Apr. 2025
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The power basketball conferences have dominated, and because power means football, and football means money, specifically more NIL money to use as tokens for players to use the NCAA transfer portal, pessimists see the mid-majors such as San Diego State on life support.—
Nick Canepa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Apr. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Defeatist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defeatist. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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