 970,941,640 visitors served. | 
|
 Dictionary/ thesaurus |  Medical dictionary |  Legal dictionary |  Financial dictionary |  Acronyms |  Idioms |  Encyclopedia |  Wikipedia encyclopedia | ? |
cynic |
Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia | 0.01 sec. |
cynicMember of a school of Greek philosophy (cynicism), founded in Athens about 400 BC by Antisthenes, a disciple of Socrates, who advocated a stern and simple morality and a complete disregard of pleasure and comfort. His followers, led by Diogenes, not only showed a contemptuous disregard for pleasure, but despised all human affection as a source of weakness. Their ‘snarling contempt’ for ordinary people earned them the name of cynic (Greek ‘doglike’). |
|
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
? Mentioned in | ? References in classic literature | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| So the Cynic turned out of the road to let the Optimist roll by in his gold carriage. Though Thackeray is no cynic he is a satirist as much as Pope or Dryden, but the most kindly satirist who ever wrote. As the Cynic spoke, several of the party were startled by a gleam of red splendor, that showed the huge shapes of the surrounding mountains and the rock-bestrewn bed of the turbulent river with an illumination unlike that of their fire on the trunks and black boughs of the forest trees. |
cynic
 |
| Free Tools: |
For surfers:
Browser extension |
Word of the Day |
Help
For webmasters: Free content NEW! | Linking | Lookup box | Double-click lookup | Partner with us |
|
|---|
Disclaimer |
Privacy policy |
Feedback | Copyright © 2008 Farlex, Inc.All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.