Ad Hominem Definition

hŏmə-nĕm, -nəm

adjective

Attacking a person's character or motivations rather than a position or argument.

Debaters should avoid ad hominem arguments that question their opponents' motives.

American Heritage

Appealing to prejudice and emotion rather than to reason.

Webster's New World

Appealing to the emotions rather than to logic or reason.

American Heritage

Attacking the character, motives, etc. of an opponent rather than debating the issue on logical grounds.

Webster's New World

To the person. Appealing to personal prejudices instead of reason; attacking one’s character rather than his arguments.

Webster's New World Law

noun

A fallacious objection to an argument or factual claim by appealing to a characteristic or belief of the person making the argument or claim, rather than by addressing the substance of the argument or producing evidence against the claim; an attempt to argue against an opponent's idea by discrediting the opponent himself.

Wiktionary

A personal attack.

Wiktionary

adverb

In an ad hominem manner.

He tried to make his case by arguing ad hominem.

Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Ad Hominem

Noun

Singular:

ad hominem

Plural:

ad-hominems

Origin of Ad Hominem

Shortened from the Latin expression argumentum ad hominem, argument at the person. From argumentum (meaning "argument") + ad (meaning "to" or "at") + hominem, the accusative singular of homo (meaning "man"). It can also mean attacking the messenger.

From Wiktionary
Latin ad to hominem accusative of homō man

From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition