timonian

/taɪˈməʊ.ni.ən/

Etymology

From Timon + -ian, after the 5th-century-BCE person Timon of Athens (as described by Plutarch, Lucian, and Aristophanes), possibly by way of William Shakespeare's play Timon of Athens (c. 1607). Used by poet John Langhorne in his translation of Plutarch's Lives (1777).

Why this word is great

TIMONIAN — [Adjective] Of or relating to a form of bitter misanthropy, as exemplified by Timon of Athens. From Timon (the name of the 5th-century-BCE Athenian misanthrope) + -ian (suffix forming adjectives). Unlike "cynical" (which implies a general distrust of human motives) or "ascetic" (which rejects worldly pleasures for spiritual reasons), "Timonian" is a venomous retreat from humanity itself. It is the taste of sour wine drunk alone in a cave, the act of burying gold where no one will ever find it, or the sound of laughter turned inward until it becomes a curse—the final, irrevocable refusal to believe in anything but the world’s corruption. A Timonian stance is the last refuge of a heart that once loved too much.

adj

Of a form of bitter misanthropy relating to Timonism, like Timon of Athens.“[About Timon's account of Pyrrho's views.] The second Timonian passage is usually taken to come from his prose work, Python.”
Of or relating to Skeptic philosopher Timon of Phlius, his life, works, style, or ideas.
Of or relating to the French Catholic Sacred Heart congregation founded by Joseph-Marie Timon-David.

noun

A member of the French Catholic Sacred Heart congregation founded by Joseph-Marie Timon-David.