as in ambiguity
reasoning or arguments that sound correct but are actually false
She said that many of the points made during the debate were pure sophistry.
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Recent Examples of sophistry
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
Amid the verbal sophistry of recent months, it’s become increasingly clear that actions speak far louder.
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 23 Dec. 2023
Many of Khan’s progressive allies have floated a much more realistic cure for Khan’s abysmal litigation track record: to rewrite antitrust laws in Congress, where laws are made, instead of losing case after case in court with tortured legalistic sophistry and ad hoc judicial rulemaking.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 7 Dec. 2023
Today, no amount of sophistry can sustain that claim.
—Andrew J. Bacevich, Foreign Affairs, 28 Feb. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sophistry
Rory Smith, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Amid the verbal sophistry of recent months, it’s become increasingly clear that actions speak far louder.
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 23 Dec. 2023
Many of Khan’s progressive allies have floated a much more realistic cure for Khan’s abysmal litigation track record: to rewrite antitrust laws in Congress, where laws are made, instead of losing case after case in court with tortured legalistic sophistry and ad hoc judicial rulemaking.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 7 Dec. 2023
Today, no amount of sophistry can sustain that claim.
—Andrew J. Bacevich, Foreign Affairs, 28 Feb. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sophistry
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sophistry
Noun
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According to the outlet’s research findings, uncertainty and ambiguity are hallmarks of entrepreneurship.—
Jasmine Browley,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
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Curiosity and possibly even lust play into their first encounter; part of the welcome complexity between this pale-skinned woman of substance and this tall, equally alabaster, formerly dead drink of water is the ambiguity in their initial interactions.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But there’s some deception at play.—
Vann R. Newkirk II,
The Atlantic,
16 Sep. 2025
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Stories of similar scenes are sweeping Puerto Rico—raids without court orders, marked by deception and racial profiling, often regardless of legal status.—
Israel Melendez Ayala,
Time,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Of course, the retort is that this would be irritating and exasperating to be continually deluged with alerts about AI deceptiveness.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Although Harold is not literary fiction’s first obsessive ruminator, what makes Muscle Man feel so plugged into the moment is how common the predicament feels.—
Jeremy Gordon,
The Atlantic,
12 Sep. 2025
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The arrow sequence, though, has a connection to video gaming, recognizably originating in a game called Helldivers 2, a science-fiction narrative similar to Robert Heinlein’s book Starship Troopers that covers fascistic themes.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sophistry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sophistry. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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