the received wisdom

the received wisdom

Common knowledge that is held to be true, but may not be. The received wisdom says to feed a cold and starve a fever, but that doesn't reflect current medical practice.See also: received, wisdom

conventional/received ˈwisdom

the view or belief that most people have: Conventional wisdom has it that riots only ever happen in big cities.The term conventional wisdom was first used by the economist John Kenneth Galbraith in his book The Affluent Society.See also: conventional, received, wisdom