cynic, faultfinder
(noun) someone who is critical of the motives of others
Cynic
(noun) a member of a group of ancient Greek philosophers who advocated the doctrine that virtue is the only good and that the essence of virtue is self-control
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Cynic (plural Cynics)
A member of a sect of Ancient Greek philosophers who believed virtue to be the only good and self-control to be the only means of achieving virtue.
Cynic (not comparable)
Of or relating to the Cynics.
• Cincy
cynic (comparative more cynic, superlative most cynic)
cynical (in all senses)
(not comparable) Relating to the Dog Star.
cynic (plural cynics)
A person who believes that all people are motivated by selfishness.
A person whose outlook is scornfully negative.
• Cincy
Source: Wiktionary
Cyn"ic (sn"k), Cyn"ic*al (--kal), a. Etym: [L. cynicus of the sect of Cynics, fr. Gr. Hound.]
1. Having the qualities of a surly dog; snarling; captious; currish. I hope it is no very cynical asperity not to confess obligations where no benefit has been received. Johnson.
2. Pertaining to the Dog Star; as, the cynic, or Sothic, year; cynic cycle.
3. Belonging to the sect of philosophers called cynics; having the qualities of a cynic; pertaining to, or resembling, the doctrines of the cynics.
4. Given to sneering at rectitude and the conduct of life by moral principles; disbelieving in the reality of any human purposes which are not suggested or directed by self-interest or self-indulgence; as, a cynical man who scoffs at pretensions of integrity; characterized by such opinions; as, cynical views of human nature.
Note: In prose, cynical is used rather than cynic, in the senses 1 and 4. Cynic spasm (Med.), a convulsive contraction of the muscles of one side of the face, producing a sort of grin, suggesting certain movements in the upper lip of a dog.
Cyn"ic, n. (Gr. Philos)
1. One of a sect or school of philosophers founded by Antisthenes, and of whom Diogenes was a disciple. The first Cynics were noted for austere lives and their scorn for social customs and current philosophical opinions. Hence the term Cynic symbolized, in the popular judgment, moroseness, and contempt for the views of others.
2. One who holds views resembling those of the Cynics; a snarler; a misanthrope; particularly, a person who believes that human conduct is directed, either consciously or unconsciously, wholly by self- interest or self-indulgence, and that appearances to the contrary are superficial and untrustworthy. He could obtain from one morose cynic, whose opinion it was impossible to despise, scarcely any not acidulated with scorn. Macaulay.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
15 April 2025
(adjective) marked by or promising bad fortune; “their business venture was doomed from the start”; “an ill-fated business venture”; “an ill-starred romance”; “the unlucky prisoner was again put in irons”- W.H.Prescott
The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.
