quibble; sophistry; specious argument
Meanings
2 senses · 6 examplesverb
to quibble; to argue unreasonably; to resort to sophistry
Commonly used in everyday contexts to describe someone making excuses or arguing stubbornly without reason, often to evade responsibility.
Since you've violated traffic laws, stop quibbling.
The evidence is conclusive; no amount of quibbling will help you.
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Don't quibble over your mistakes; admitting and correcting them is the right attitude.
verb/noun
to engage in sophistry; to use specious reasoning that appears logical but actually violates logical principles; sophistry
formalTechnical term in logic and philosophy referring to deliberate deception through seemingly valid arguments that contain hidden fallacies.
This is a typical case of sophistry: it appears logical on the surface but actually commits the fallacy of equivocation.
The ancient Greek Sophists were often criticized for being adept at sophistry.
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We must learn to identify sophistry to avoid being misled by fallacious reasoning.