sophist
noun
- ancient Greek teacher who taught “virtue” to young statesmen and nobles, often using philosophy and rhetoric
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈsɒfɪst/ / /ˈsoʊfɪst/
noun
Etymology: Learned borrowing from Latin sophista and sophistes, borrowed from Ancient Greek σοφιστής (sophistḗs, “wise one”), from σοφίζομαι (sophízomai, “to become wise”).
- Alternative letter-case form of Sophist, certain teachers in Ancient Greece, particularly skilled orators.
- A teacher who uses plausible but fallacious reasoning.
- One who is captious, fallacious, or deceptive in argument.
“[T]hey have acted in this Calumny both the injuſtice of the Tyrant, and the forgery of the Sophiſt.”
- Synonym of sophister (“university student who has completed at least one year”).