Pessimist

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpɛsɪmɪst/

Definitions

1. A person who habitually expects unfavorable outcomes and believes that evil or misfortune will ultimately prevail over good
2. A person who tends to see the negative side of situations, believing that adverse circumstances are inevitable and good outcomes are unlikely to occur
3. An individual characterized by a tendency to focus on the bleak aspects of events, often expecting unfavorable results instead of positive ones

Etymology: The word is a late arrival built from a superlative. Its root is Latin "pessimus," meaning "worst," the superlative of "malus" (bad). English took the word through French "pessimiste," and the suffix "-ist" marks a person who holds a belief or practises a stance, as in "optimist," which was formed on the same pattern as its opposite. The pairing matters. "Pessimist" was coined as the counterpart of "optimist," so the two words came into use together, each defined against the other. A pessimist is, in effect, someone who has taken the superlative of badness as a worldview: not merely that things are bad, but that the worst is what to expect.

Synonyms: cynic, defeatist, naysayer, doomster, gloomy person

Antonyms: optimist, idealist, hopeful person, cheerful person, realist