sophistry
noun /ˈsɒfɪstri/
/ˈsɑːfɪstri/
(plural sophistries)
(formal)- [uncountable] the use of clever arguments to persuade people that something is true when it is really false
- Convincing myself that I had gained in some way from my loss was just pure sophistry.
- [countable] a reason or an explanation that tries to show that something is true when it is really false
- He was hostile to their hypocritical sophistries.
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French sophistrie or medieval Latin sophistria, from Latin sophista from Greek sophistēs, from sophizesthai ‘devise, become wise’, from sophos ‘wise’.