Question

explain the phrase a defeatist mind

Answer 1

defeatist. Having adefeatist attitude meansthat you give up before you've even started, like the runner who is so convinced he's going to lose the race that he doesn't even bother to go to the starting line. Adefeatist is the opposite of an optimist.

Answer 2

A defeatist mind belongs to someone who thinks or talks in a way that suggests that they expect to be unsuccessful, i.e., a person who too readily accepts or expects defeat.