Use specious to describe an argument that seems to be good, correct, or logical, but is not so. We live on the earth, therefore the earth must be the center of the universe has been proven to be a specious theory of the solar systems.
- Pronunciation: /'spiʃəs/
- English Description: not in accordance with the fact or reality or actuality
- Synonyms: spurious
- Chinese Translation: 华而不实的(hua2 er2 bu4 shi2 de)
- Spanish Translation: especioso(a)
- ORIGIN: Specious is pronounced "SPEE-shuhs." Something that is specious is attractive in a deceptive way, and if you follow the word's etymology, you'll see why. In Middle English, this adjective meant "attractive," from Latin speciōsus "showy, beautiful," from speciēs "appearance, kind, sort." Latin speciēs is also the source of English species.
EXAMPLE SENTENCE:
- And it’s hard to get away with a specious argument in her presence.
- The polls indicating he is still way out in front post-debate are specious.
*New word description, story and part of "EXAMPLE SENTENCE" are cited in Vocabulary.com