eristic

adjective

variants also eristical
Definition of eristicnext
as in sophistic

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for eristic
  1. sophistic
  2. irrational
  3. misleading
  4. specious
  5. illogical
  6. unreasonable
  7. fallacious
  8. nonrational
Adjective
  • The characters are treated with odd touches of realism and their sophistic arguments are stingingly psychologized.
    — Charles McNulty, latimes.com, 8 Sep. 2017
Definition of sophistic
Adjective
  • In both cases, cheap credit fueled the irrational exuberance.
    — Annie Lowrey, The Atlantic, 21 July 2026
  • An irrational holding on to the possibility of a comeback, if that was the word if no one noticed you’d retired in the first place.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 July 2026
Definition of irrational
Adjective
  • The information on garment labels is often inaccurate or misleading, according to new research by the European Commission.
    — Tamsin Blanchard, Vogue, 16 July 2026
  • The standout interlude is the soldiers’ visit to the island domain of Circe, a treacherous witch played with deceptive calm and a misleading air of distraction by a bone-chilling Samantha Morton.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 15 July 2026
Definition of misleading
Adjective
  • In the world of wellness and health content, few areas of our anatomy attract more interest lately — and specious claims — than the gut microbiome.
    — Will Stone, NPR, 22 June 2026
  • In fairness, concluding no one cares is a specious take, at best, based on the evidence Tuesday.
    — Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 10 June 2026
Definition of specious
Adjective
  • Their complaints have been mostly incoherent and illogical, with UEFA's statement in particular being laughably inaccurate.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 7 July 2026
  • In spite of D'Arcy's best efforts, Rhaenyra is an impenetrable character with illogical choices and zero magnetism to the viewers (or seemingly, her councilors).
    — Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 21 June 2026
Definition of illogical
Adjective
  • From the second Eldridge was drafted, a little devil appeared on your shoulder and whispered unreasonable expectations into your ear.
    — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 13 July 2026
  • In a poll on the post, 95% voted that this parent is NOT being unreasonable.
    — Melissa Willets, Parents, 12 July 2026
Definition of unreasonable
Adjective
  • Defenders of Israel believe that designation is fallacious and dangerous.
    — Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 13 July 2026
  • There is a widespread but fallacious perception that India's tariffs are inordinately high.
    — Mohan Kumar, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Aug. 2025
Definition of fallacious
Adjective
  • Mid-century collective behavior theories considered social movements to be nonrational, spontaneous events occurring during moments of social and cultural breakdown.
    — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 10 Sep. 2025
Definition of nonrational
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.

Browse Nearby Words

ergo
eristic
ermine
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Eristic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/eristic. Accessed 25 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on eristic

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about eristic

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All