Definition of sophistry
sophistries
1 : subtly deceptive reasoning or argumentation
2 : sophism 1
Indulge Your Inner Word Nerd
sophistry was our Word of the Day on 08/26/2008. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Recent Examples of sophistry from the Web
-
This ruling is pure sophistry that defies common sense.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sophistry.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
sophistry Has Roots in Greek Philosophy
The original Sophists were ancient Greek teachers of rhetoric and philosophy prominent in the 5th century B.C. In their heyday, these philosophers were considered adroit in their reasoning, but later philosophers (particularly Plato) described them as sham philosophers, out for money and willing to say anything to win an argument. Thus sophist (which comes from Greek sophistēs, meaning "wise man" or "expert") earned a negative connotation as "a captious or fallacious reasoner." Sophistry is reasoning that seems plausible on a superficial level but is actually unsound, or reasoning that is used to deceive.
First Known Use of sophistry
14th century
Other Philosophy Terms
SOPHISTRY Defined for English Language Learners
sophistry
playDefinition of sophistry for English Language Learners
-
: the use of reasoning or arguments that sound correct but are actually false
-
: a reason or argument that sounds correct but is actually false
Learn More about sophistry
-
Nglish: Translation of sophistry for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of sophistry for Arabic speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up sophistry? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!