SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
fallacy
noun
A mistaken belief or an argument that rests on faulty reasoning.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Error in reasoning or belief
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topA reasoning fallacy concerns how a conclusion is supported; a misconception may simply be a mistaken belief.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See fallacy in use
The class identified a fallacy in the claim that popularity guarantees accuracy.
Whether the laundry should open an hour earlier remained debatable because residents had reasonable concerns on both sides. The proposed earlier shift had a clear justification: several residents needed access before leaving for work. One speaker nevertheless used a fallacy, arguing that the plan must be best simply because its supporter had lived in the building longest.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license