skeptic
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skeptic
A person who tends to doubt claims, ideas, or generally accepted opinions and to question them critically.
Als Skeptiker glaubte er die Geschichte erst, als er die Beweise mit eigenen Augen sah.
As a skeptic, he only believed the story when he saw the evidence with his own eyes.
'Der Skeptiker' (the skeptic) belongs to a word family. The related adjective is 'skeptisch' (skeptical), and the abstract noun is 'die Skepsis' (skepticism/doubt).
Sie ist neuen Ideen gegenüber immer sehr skeptisch.
She is always very skeptical about new ideas.
To express toward whom or what a person is skeptical, the preposition 'gegenüber' (toward/with regard to) is often used with the dative.
Er ist ein Skeptiker gegenüber allen neuen Technologien.
He is a skeptic when it comes to all new technologies.
To describe the attitude of a skeptic, verbs are often combined with the adjective 'skeptisch' (skeptical). Typical phrases are 'skeptisch sein' (to be skeptical), 'skeptisch bleiben' (to remain skeptical), or 'jemanden skeptisch ansehen' (to look at someone skeptically).
Auch nach der Präsentation blieben viele Zuhörer skeptisch.
Even after the presentation, many listeners remained skeptical.
critic
'der Kritiker' and 'der Skeptiker' both have to do with a critical attitude. However, a critic is more likely to express specific criticism: they say what is bad about something or what should be improved. A skeptic does not believe something right away and asks questions before agreeing. The words can be confused because both do not simply agree. 'Kritiker' fits better when someone openly speaks against something; 'Skeptiker' fits better when someone doubts something and remains cautious.
Als Skeptiker wollte Max zuerst Beweise sehen, bevor er dem Angebot glaubte.
As a skeptic, Max first wanted to see evidence before he believed the offer.
Der Kritiker der Reform sagte, dass die neuen Regeln zu kompliziert seien.
The critic of the reform said that the new rules were too complicated.