fallacy Hear it!

fallacy Definition

fal·lacy (fal′ə sē)

noun pl. -·cies

  1. Obsolete deception
  2. aptness to mislead; deceptive or delusive quality the fallacy of the senses
  3. a false or mistaken idea, opinion, etc.; error
    1. an error in reasoning; flaw or defect in argument
    2. Logic an argument which does not conform to the rules of logic, esp. one that appears to be sound

Etymology: ME fallace < OFr < L fallacia, deception, artifice < fallax (gen. fallacis), deceitful < fallere, to deceive: see fail

fallacy Synonyms

fallacy

n.

  1. An error in reasoning

    inconsistency, illogicality, sophism, sophistry, casuistry, quibble, quibbling, evasion, deceit, deception, delusion, equivocation, subterfuge, Jesuitry, misinterpretation, erroneousness, inexactness, error, deviation from truth, perversion, bias, prejudice, preconception, non sequitur, deceptive belief, deceptiveness, aberration, falsity, false notion, misleading appearance, illusion, speciousness, equivoke, artifice, ambiguity, solecism, paradox, miscalculation, quirk, flaw, cavil, irrelevancy, erratum, invalidity, heresy, heterodoxy.

    Antonyms logic*, reason*, law*. *

  2. A mistaken idea

    misconception, misapprehension, delusion; see error 1, mistake 2.

fallacy Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • argument: The work also amply demonstrates the fallacy of that argument.
  • theory: The fallacy of dependency theory has been demonstrated by sociologist Peter Berger of Boston University.
  • composition: This is an error ( the fallacy of composition ).

Converse of object

  • expose: Joe Cummins has exposed the fallacy of this claim [ 3 ] .
  • commit: RESPONSE: Bravo commits the fallacy of false analogy.
  • demonstrate: The work also amply demonstrates the fallacy of that argument.
  • illustrate: This illustrates the fallacy of treating acute disturbance in this manner.
  • examine: Vaughan Waller examines the fallacies and the business case for the acquisition of a learning management system.
  • avoid: This is why Moore's own view of goodness as sui generis and irreducible is supposed to avoid the naturalistic fallacy.

Noun used with modifier

  • rate: Keywords: Base rate fallacy, Bayes ' theorem, decision making, ecological validity, ethics, fallacy, judgment, probability.
  • base: Keywords: Base rate fallacy, Bayes ' theorem, decision making, ecological validity, ethics, fallacy, judgment, probability.
  • value: Fifth, the whole thing involves the extreme value fallacy.
  • technology: Social engineering fits into the paradigm of the trusted technology fallacy quite well, actually.

Adjective modifier

  • naturalistic: So the so-called naturalistic fallacy is no fallacy at all.
  • pathetic: I've always been a big fan of the pathetic fallacy, unlike Ruskin, who coined the term.
  • exegetical: Some Common Exegetical Fallacies Unfortunately, each of the principles of interpretation we have considered may be abused in various ways.
  • logical: Ah, the logical fallacy of " You prove it first.
  • intentional: A popular expression often used to argue against the view that the author is the determiner of meaning is the " intentional fallacy.
  • ecological: The ' ecological fallacy ' is a statement about ' ecological correlation ' , not about ecology in itself.

Preposition: in

  • argument: The fallacy in this argument is that such a treaty is practically unenforceable.
fallacy Quotes

The great fallacy is that the game is first and last about winning.It'snothingofthekind.Thegame isabout glory. It's about doing things in style, with a flourish, about going out and beating the other lot, not waiting for them to die of boredom.

—Blanchflower, Danny (Robert Dennio)

   In retrospect it always seems as if everything had to develop just the way it did. I call this view the fallacy of retrospective determinismöwhich looks at the modern world as a victory of the children of light over the children of darkness if we approve of the development, and of darkness over light if we condemn it.

—Bendix, Reinhard

All violent feelings†produce in us a falseness in all our impressions of external things, which I would generally characterize as the'Pathetic Fallacy'.

—Ruskin,John

I must begin with a good body of facts and not from a principle (in which I always suspect some fallacy) and then as much deduction as you please.

—Darwin, Charles Robert

Browse dictionary entries near fallacy

  1. ‹ fallacious
  2. ‹ Falla
  3. ‹ fall to
  4. ‹ fall short
  5. ‹ Fall River
  6. ‹ fall out
  7. ‹ fall on
  8. ‹ fall off
  9. ‹ fall line
  10. ‹ fall in
  1. fallback ›
  2. fallback modem ›
  3. fallen ›
  4. fallen angel ›
  5. faller ›
  6. fallfish ›
  7. fallibility ›
  8. fallible ›
  9. falling ›
  10. falling-out ›