spurious Hear it!

spurious Definition

spu·ri·ous (spyo̵orē əs, spʉr-)

adjective

  1. Now Rare illegitimate; bastard
  2. not true or genuine; false; counterfeit
  3. Bot. like in appearance but unlike in structure or function
  4. Radio designating or of an unwanted signal transmitted or received at other than the desired frequency

Etymology: L spurius, illegitimate (in LL, false), orig., a bastard < Etr

spurious Related Forms
spu·ri·ously adverb spu·ri·ous·ness noun
spurious Synonyms

spurious

modif.

counterfeit, apocryphal, deceptive; see artificial 1, false 2, 3. See syn. study at artificial.

spurious Usage Examples

Infinitive complement

  • argue: It is spurious to argue that a new agenda will have short term economic benefits.

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • make: But the cost of living is much lower in Africa, making such comparisons somewhat spurious.

Modifies a noun

  • oscillation: The numerical method then must be able to handle discontinuities without introducing non-physical, spurious oscillations.
  • legitimacy: Its master was even prepared to falsify charters to give its changed role a spurious legitimacy.
  • detection: There was also a spurious detection toward the bottom of the field.
  • justification: In addition, it provides a spurious justification for the maintenance and extension of the surveillance state.
  • charter: Fortunately, spurious charters are usually identified in printed editions.
  • correlation: The main problem with spurious correlations is that we typically do not know what the " hidden " agent is.

Modifying Another Word

  • utterly: The legal authority claimed for the Norms was therefore utterly spurious.
  • entirely: Many have been cut down for entirely spurious reasons.
  • somewhat: But the cost of living is much lower in Africa, making such comparisons somewhat spurious.
  • totally: This alone shows the totally spurious nature of this justification.
  • equally: This assumption is equally spurious for, if anything, the Bay of Pigs was a classic tragedy of good intentions.
  • completely: A great deal of the evidence presented for evolution is completely spurious.

Used with adjective complement

  • seem: For a format that seemed so spurious in conception and then initially vague upon realization, I'm a Celebrity.. .
  • prove: Thank god many of the gloomy predictions of Labor's left wing proved spurious.
  • consider: Thus nearly 99 % of these hadith were considered spurious.
  • make: Without the payment in satisfaction function some defendants would make spurious, unsupported offers.
  • appear: However, this argument appeared spurious, since practically nothing is reliably known about which kinds of intervention achieve relevant outcomes in PSE work.
  • prevent: The delay on upward crossing of the threshold provides immunity to transients and other interference, thereby preventing spurious triggering of the output relay.

Browse dictionary entries near spurious

  1. spurge laurel
  2. spurge
  3. spur track
  4. spur gear
  5. spur
  6. spunky
  7. spunk
  8. spun yarn
  9. spun sugar
  10. spun silk
  1. spurn
  2. spurred
  3. spurrier
  4. spurry
  5. spurt
  6. sputnik
  7. sputter
  8. sputum
  9. Spuyten Duyvil
  10. SPV