sophist
[ sof-ist ]
/ ˈsɒf ɪst /
noun
(often initial capital letter) Greek History.
- any of a class of professional teachers in ancient Greece who gave instruction in various fields, as in general culture, rhetoric, politics, or disputation.
- a person belonging to this class at a later period who, while professing to teach skill in reasoning, concerned himself with ingenuity and specious effectiveness rather than soundness of argument.
a person who reasons adroitly and speciously rather than soundly.
a philosopher.
Origin of sophist
1535–45; < Latin
sophista < Greek
sophistḗs sage, derivative of
sophízesthai
OTHER WORDS FROM sophist
an·ti·soph·ist, noun, adjectiveWords nearby sophist
sopher,
sophi,
sophia,
sophie,
sophism,
sophist,
sophister,
sophistic,
sophisticate,
sophisticated,
sophistication
Example sentences from the Web for sophists
British Dictionary definitions for sophists
sophist
/ (ˈsɒfɪst) /
noun
(often capital)
one of the pre-Socratic philosophers who were itinerant professional teachers of oratory and argument and who were prepared to enter into debate on any matter however specious
a person who uses clever or quibbling arguments that are fundamentally unsound
Word Origin for sophist
C16: from Latin
sophista, from Greek
sophistēs a wise man, from
sophizesthai to act craftily
Cultural definitions for sophists
sophists
[ (sof-ists) ]
Ancient Greek teachers who were accused by some of their contemporaries (including Plato) of being more interested in winning arguments through crafty rhetoric than in pursuing truth.
notes for sophists
By extension, a “sophist” is someone who engages in persuasive but false arguments.