devil's advocate
noun
1
: a Roman Catholic official whose duty is to examine critically the evidence on which a demand for beatification or canonization rests
2
: a person who champions the less accepted cause for the sake of argument
Examples of devil's advocate in a Sentence
Teachers often play devil's advocate to provoke discussion in the classroom.
Recent Examples on the Web
However, Niño played devil's advocate with that stat.
—
Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 6 Oct. 2025
Just playing devil's advocate for peoples' taste buds here.
—Bon Appétit, Bon Appetit Magazine, 10 Apr. 2025
Increasingly, the dynamic world that businesses operate in requires new ways of thinking and diverse perspectives from many devil's advocates to help drive growth.
—Thomas Jensen, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2023
Kavanaugh, for his part, gave a list of prominent cases in which the court overturned precedent (though oral arguments can at times be misleading, and intended to play devil's advocate).
—Brigid Kennedy, The Week, 1 Dec. 2021
Because something's gotta give, and championing this book doesn't require anyone to play devil's advocate.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 11 Nov. 2021
Still, the devil's advocate argument: Riley has yet to develop a high school prospect of his own, with Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray and Jalen Hurts all arriving via the transfer route.
—Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY, 1 Sep. 2020
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 6 Oct. 2025
Just playing devil's advocate for peoples' taste buds here.
—Bon Appétit, Bon Appetit Magazine, 10 Apr. 2025
Increasingly, the dynamic world that businesses operate in requires new ways of thinking and diverse perspectives from many devil's advocates to help drive growth.
—Thomas Jensen, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2023
Kavanaugh, for his part, gave a list of prominent cases in which the court overturned precedent (though oral arguments can at times be misleading, and intended to play devil's advocate).
—Brigid Kennedy, The Week, 1 Dec. 2021
Because something's gotta give, and championing this book doesn't require anyone to play devil's advocate.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 11 Nov. 2021
Still, the devil's advocate argument: Riley has yet to develop a high school prospect of his own, with Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray and Jalen Hurts all arriving via the transfer route.
—Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY, 1 Sep. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Devil's advocate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/devil%27s%20advocate. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share