Dictionary

yeasayer en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈjeɪˌseɪ.ɚ/ (US)
• (Australia) audio
• /ˈjeɪˌseɪ.ə(ɹ)/ (UK)

Etymology

From yeasay + -er. By analogy with naysayer. First use appears c. 1584.

Meanings

1. One whose attitude is positive, optimistic, confidently affirmative.
2. (derogatory) One who habitually agrees uncritically.
   • The “yeasayer effect” arises in AI models trained using reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF)—human “data labellers” rate the answer generated by the model as being either acceptable or not. 2025 June 14, Melissa Heikkilä, “AI leaders rein in ‘sycophantic’ chatbots that flatter users”, in FT Weekend (Companies & Markets section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12:

Forms

Antonyms

naysayer · nay-sayer

Relateds

yeasaying · yea-saying

Synonyms

can-doer · yes man · doormat · optimist · kowtower

Translations (12)

pl klakier (who habitually agrees uncritically) · pl przytakiwacz (who habitually agrees uncritically) · ru подхалим (who habitually agrees uncritically) · de Jasager (who habitually agrees uncritically) · ar إِمَّعَة (who habitually agrees uncritically) · de Ja-Sagerin (who habitually agrees uncritically) · ru подпевала (who habitually agrees uncritically) · fi jees-mies (who habitually agrees uncritically) · cs přikyvovač (who habitually agrees uncritically) · de Ja-Sager (who habitually agrees uncritically) · pl leming (who habitually agrees uncritically) · de Jasagerin (who habitually agrees uncritically)