Sophist

English Etymology en la sophista and la sophistes, borrowed from en grc σοφιστής wise one, from grc σοφίζομαι to become wise. Noun en historical A teacher in Ancient Greece, particularly en pejorative teachers of oratory noted for their disingenuous argumentation and fallacious reasoning. en sophister obsolete en pejorative en sophist, various figurative senses. Usage notes The negative senses of the term Sophist chiefly derive from Plato and his contrast of their methods and arguments with those of Socrates. Scholarly and historical use of the term varies by period: A Sophist of the earliest period was a master who taught any practical skill or knowledge for a fee. Later Sophists were professional teachers intended to provide their students arete, "virtue" or "human excellence". By Late Antiquity, Sophists were generally exclusively skilled orators or teachers of oratory. Coordinate terms en sophistress archaic References Fishler, Max. "Sophists" in Dictionary of Philosophy (1962), p. 295. "Sophist," Encyclopedia Britannica. en People Education Philosophy Rhetoric Ancient Greece