Advertisement

Advertisement

View synonyms for fallacy

fallacy

[ fal-uh-see ]

noun

, plural fal·la·cies.
  1. a deceptive, misleading, or false notion, belief, etc.:

    That the world is flat was at one time a popular fallacy.

    Synonyms: misapprehension, delusion, misconception

  2. a misleading or unsound argument.
  3. deceptive, misleading, or false nature; erroneousness.
  4. Logic. any of various types of erroneous reasoning that render arguments logically unsound.
  5. Obsolete. deception.


fallacy

/ ˈfæləsɪ /

noun

  1. an incorrect or misleading notion or opinion based on inaccurate facts or invalid reasoning
  2. unsound or invalid reasoning
  3. the tendency to mislead
  4. logic an error in reasoning that renders an argument logically invalid


fallacy

  1. A false or mistaken idea based on faulty knowledge or reasoning. For example, kings who have divorced their wives for failing to produce a son have held to the fallacy that a mother determines the sex of a child, when actually the father does. ( See sex chromosomes .)


Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of fallacy1

First recorded in 1350–1400; from Latin fallācia “a trick, deceit,” from fallāc- (stem of fallāx ) “deceitful” + -ia -y 3; replacing Middle English fallace, from Middle French

Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of fallacy1

C15: from Latin fallācia , from fallax deceitful, from fallere to deceive

Discover More

Example Sentences

They did so, in fact, only hours after the fallacy that the election was stolen had boiled over into a violent assault on the Capitol, one that left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer.

How to avoid logical fallacies and critical-thinking fallacies.

It’s a planning fallacy based on screwy positive self-perception.

That wrong-headed mental blind spot, the planning fallacy, results in us not preparing sufficiently for contingencies and problems.

From Fortune

As much as marketers would like to control the narrative around their brands doing so is a fallacy.

From Digiday

In fact, what this map really showed was the fallacy of aggregates – and how statistics can mask real cultural shifts.

Every time the thermometer drops, another anti-science politician mocks climate change as a fallacy.

But here he falls victim to a prevalent fallacy: the confusion of means with ends.

Despite its patent fallacy, the impact of the “Christian Nation” revisionist history on American attitudes is substantial.

Wasn't I committing the Lump of Labor Fallacy, assuming that the jobs that were disappearing meant permanent unemployment?

An underlying fallacy of Socialism is the concept that poverty or at least extreme poverty, can be banished from the world.

I remark only the fallacy of reasoning from a wide average, to cases necessarily differing greatly from any average.

A fallacy of misobservation may be either negative or positive; either Non-observation or Mal-observation.

By the last clause I presume is meant, that it is not susceptible of any other proof; for otherwise, there would be no fallacy.

This is a fallacy of overlooking; or of non-observation, within the intent of our classification.

Advertisement

Word of the Day

axolotl

[ak-suh-lot-l ]

Meaning and examples

Start each day with the Word of the Day in your inbox!

By clicking "Sign Up", you are accepting Dictionary.com Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


fallaciousfallacy of composition