sophistry
noun
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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.
Examples of sophistry in a Sentence
Fara Dabhoiwala, Harpers Magazine, 4 June 2025
The 2022 vaccine mandate decision, another 6-3 masterpiece, turned on sophistry that workplace rules only covered hazards found solely in the workplace (but somehow excluding, say, forced air-breathing with infected employees), and ignored the deeper reality that vaccines save lives.
—The Editors, Scientific American, 10 July 2024
Today, no amount of sophistry can sustain that claim.
—Andrew J. Bacevich, Foreign Affairs, 28 Feb. 2023
And if Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta try to point it out before Manchester City faces Arsenal on Sunday, it will be viewed as gamesmanship, or deflection, or unapologetic sophistry.
—Rory Smith, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for sophistry
Cite this Entry
“Sophistry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sophistry. Accessed 14 Jul. 2025.
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sophistry
noun
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