Complacent

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /kəmˈpleɪsənt/

Definitions

1. Satisfied with oneself to the point of being unaware of potential dangers or deficiencies
2. Self-satisfied and unaware of risks or shortcomings
3. Contentedly indifferent to improvement or potential problems

Etymology: Latin "complacēre" meant "to please greatly" or "to please at the same time," built from "com-" ("together") and "placēre" ("to please"). The English adjective "complacent" carries that original sense of pleasing or agreeable, and it is a close cousin of "complaisant," which kept the courteous, eager-to-please flavour that "complacent" later lost. The word's modern sense of smug, self-satisfied unawareness is the surprising part. Somewhere along the way, a word about pleasing others shifted toward being pleased with oneself, and the sense of being content without noticing problems took over. Today "complacent" is almost always a criticism: a complacent person has stopped looking for trouble because they feel secure.

Synonyms: self-satisfied, smug, unconcerned, content

Antonyms: dissatisfied, concerned, discontented, agitated