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
Dickie, a student at Trinity College, wanders into a club debate, where he’s bewitched by the quicksilver sophistry of one of his peers, Willie, who is openly gay.
—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 22 Aug. 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
Dickie, a student at Trinity College, wanders into a club debate, where he’s bewitched by the quicksilver sophistry of one of his peers, Willie, who is openly gay.
—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sophistry
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sophistry
Noun
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This ensures no ambiguity around what success looks like at each stage. Sales Scripts & Communication: Every stage that involves interaction needs structured communication tools.—
Ryan Hohman,
Forbes.com,
5 Aug. 2025
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Under Israel’s Begin Doctrine, which prescribes preventive warfare against adversaries capable of developing weapons of mass destruction, further ambiguity over the state of Iran’s nuclear program may serve as casus belli for future hostilities.—
Hasan T. Alhasan,
Foreign Affairs,
4 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The deception here is the notion that these four men are playing against one another, cards or dice or some type of game.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
13 Aug. 2025
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Clown references imply the fans are in on Swift's schemes, here for the deception and recognize the serious undertones beneath the singer's stage makeup.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
12 Aug. 2025
Noun
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This kind of data delusion and fact fiction is, on the one hand, very sad, the mark of a man too fragile, impotent and incompetent to accept reality or withstand criticism.—
S.E. Cupp,
New York Daily News,
7 Aug. 2025
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Evie, who at the start of the book is in the camp of idle, underemployed protagonists that stud much of contemporary fiction, begins to find meaning in her work.—
Lora Kelley,
New Yorker,
7 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sophistry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sophistry. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
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