skeptic

C2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈskɛp.tɪk/ See IPA manual

Homophones

sceptic /ˈskɛp.tɪk/

Freq #31974

Meanings

1

noun
someone who habitually doubts accepted beliefs

The sceptic challenged the faith healer with some scientific data.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · someone who habitually... doubter

More agnostic denier

Word family

Forms skeptics

Derived forms antiskepticeuro-skepticeuroskepticnonskepticpseudoskepticskepticistskepticizeskeptimistskeptopathytechnoskeptic

Related forms skeptical skepticism

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French sceptique (but with a pronunciation closer to that of the Greek etymon), or possibly directly from Late Latin scepticus (originally attested only in the plural Scepticī (“the sect of Skeptics”)), from Ancient Greek σκεπτικός (skeptikós, “thoughtful, inquiring”), from σκέπτομαι (sképtomai, “to consider”), compare to σκοπέω (skopéō, “to view, examine”).

*speḱ- Proto-Indo-European sceptique Middle French scepticus la-lat σκεπτικός Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# skeptic

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈskɛp.tɪk/
**Frequency rank:** 31974

## Meanings
1. someone who habitually doubts accepted beliefs

## Examples
- The sceptic challenged the faith healer with some scientific data.

## Synonyms
- doubter
- agnostic
- denier

## Derived Forms
- antiskeptic
- euro-skeptic
- euroskeptic
- nonskeptic
- pseudoskeptic
- skepticist
- skepticize
- skeptimist
- skeptopathy
- technoskeptic

## Related Forms
- skeptical
- skepticism

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *speḱ-
- Root: sceptique
- Root: scepticus
- Root: σκεπτικός

## Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French sceptique (but with a pronunciation closer to that of the Greek etymon), or possibly directly from Late Latin scepticus (originally attested only in the plural Scepticī (“the sect of Skeptics”)), from Ancient Greek σκεπτικός (skeptikós, “thoughtful, inquiring”), from σκέπτομαι (sképtomai, “to consider”), compare to σκοπέω (skopéō, “to view, examine”).

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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