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specious

spe·cious
S s

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [spee-shuh s]
    • /ˈspi ʃəs/
    • /ˈspiː.ʃəs/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [spee-shuh s]
    • /ˈspi ʃəs/

Definitions of specious word

  • adjective specious apparently good or right though lacking real merit; superficially pleasing or plausible: specious arguments. 1
  • adjective specious pleasing to the eye but deceptive. 1
  • adjective specious Obsolete. pleasing to the eye; fair. 1
  • adjective specious plausible but false 1
  • adjective specious Something that is specious seems to exist or be true, but is not real or true. 0
  • adjective specious apparently correct or true, but actually wrong or false 0

Information block about the term

Origin of specious

First appearance:

before 1350
One of the 20% oldest English words
1350-1400; Middle English < Latin speciōsus fair, good-looking, beautiful, equivalent to speci(ēs) (see species) + -ōsus -ous

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Specious

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

specious popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 70% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
This word is included in each student's vocabulary. Most likely there is at least one movie with this word in the title.

specious usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for specious

adj specious

  • all wet — wrong; mistaken
  • artificial — Artificial objects, materials, or processes do not occur naturally and are created by human beings, for example using science or technology.
  • casuistic — of or having to do with casuistry or casuists
  • cockamamie — If you describe something as cockamamie, you mean that it is ridiculous or silly.
  • colorable — capable of being colored

adjective specious

Top questions with specious

  • what does specious mean?
  • what is specious?
  • what is the meaning of specious?
  • what is a specious argument?
  • what is specious reasoning?
  • what is the definition of specious?
  • how to use specious in a sentence?

See also

Matching words

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