sophistic

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   apparently plausible or clever but actually fallacious or misleading

   The inmate defended his theory with sophistic reasoning that confused coincidence with cause.

2. 2
   adj

   relating to the ancient Greek Sophists, their teaching, or their methods of argument

   The dialogue examines the sophistic practice of teaching rhetoric for payment.

A learned borrowing from Latin sophisticus, from Ancient Greek sophistikos, 'of or for a sophist,' based on sophistes, 'expert, wise person, or sophist.' As Sophists became associated with arguments intended to persuade rather than establish truth, the adjective acquired its critical sense 'plausible but fallacious.'

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