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fallacy definition

fal·lacy (fal′ə sē)

noun pl. fallacies -·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

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

fallacy Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • argument: The work also amply demonstrates the fallacy of that argument.

Converse of object

  • expose: Joe Cummins has exposed the fallacy of this claim [ 3 ] .

Noun used with modifier

  • rate: Keywords: Base rate fallacy, Bayes ' theorem, decision making, ecological validity, ethics, fallacy, judgment, probability.

Adjective modifier

  • naturalistic: So the so-called naturalistic fallacy is no fallacy at all.

Preposition: in

  • argument: The fallacy in this argument is that such a treaty is practically unenforceable.
fallacy usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

fallacy quotes

   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

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)

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

fallacy quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"fallacy." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/fallacy>

APA Style

fallacy. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/fallacy

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