sophist

(noun)

One of a class of teachers of rhetoric, philosophy, and politics in ancient Greece, especially one who used fallacious but plausible reasoning.

Related Terms

Examples of sophist in the following topics:

  • History of Public Speaking

    • He criticized the Sophists for using rhetoric as a means of deceit instead of discovering truth.
    • Sophist (400s BCE): The Classical Period flourished for nearly a millennium in and around Greece as democracy gained prominence.
    • Citizens learned public speaking from early teachers known as Sophists.
    • Sophists were self-appointed professors of how to succeed in the civic life of the Greek states.