cynicism
/ˈsɪn.ɪˌsɪzəm/noun
cynicism is spelled C-Y-N-I-C-I-S-M: 8 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 1.3 times per million words in written English, the 24,463rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, cynicism means “A distrustful attitude” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of cynicism is cynicisms.
How many letters and syllables are in cynicism?
| Letters | 8: C-Y-N-I-C-I-S-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.3 times per million words; the 24,463rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Sounds like |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is cynicism?
Cynicism appears 1.3 times per million words in written English, the 24,463rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce cynicism?
- UK /ˈsɪn.ɪˌsɪzəm/
Cynicism has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-cynicism.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with cynicism
Sounds like: Sinicism (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of cynicism
- cynicisms plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cynicism mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A distrustful attitude.
- 2
An emotion of jaded negativity, or a general distrust of the integrity or professed motives of others, due to belief that people are motivated solely by disguised self-interest.
- 3
A scornfully pessimistic comment or act.
- 4
A school of thought in the philosophy of Ancient Greece.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cynicism in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense skeptical, scornful or pessimistic attitude:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does cynicism come from?
From Cynicism, cynic + -ism; compare cynism.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).