fallax
English
Etymology
From Latin fallax (“deceptive”). See fallacy.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈfæləks/
Noun
fallax (plural fallaxes)
- (obsolete) cavillation; petty criticism
- a. 1556, Thomas Cranmer, An Answer to a Crafty and Sophistical Cavillation devised by Stephen Gadiner
- First, after the sum of my fourth book, collected as pleaseth you, at the first dash you begin with an untrue report, joined to a subtle deceit or fallax, saying that my chief purpose that evil men receive not the body and blood of Christ in the sacrament.
- a. 1556, Thomas Cranmer, An Answer to a Crafty and Sophistical Cavillation devised by Stephen Gadiner
References
fallax in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
Latin
Etymology
From fallō (“I deceive”) + -āx (“inclined to”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈfal.laːks/, [ˈfälːʲäːks̠]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈfal.laks/, [ˈfälːäks]
Adjective
fallāx (genitive fallācis, comparative fallācior, superlative fallācissimus, adverb fallāciter); third-declension one-termination adjective
- deceptive, deceitful
- 405 CE, Jerome, Vulgate Proverbs 26:28:
- Lingua fallāx nōn amat vēritātem: et os lūbricum operātur ruīnās. [adjective]
- A deceitful tongue loveth not truth: and a slippery mouth worketh ruin.
(Douay-Rheims trans., Challoner rev.: 1752 CE)
- A deceitful tongue loveth not truth: and a slippery mouth worketh ruin.
- Lingua fallāx nōn amat vēritātem: et os lūbricum operātur ruīnās. [adjective]
- fallacious, spurious
Declension
Third-declension one-termination adjective.
| Number | Singular | Plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Case / Gender | Masc./Fem. | Neuter | Masc./Fem. | Neuter | |
| Nominative | fallāx | fallācēs | fallācia | ||
| Genitive | fallācis | fallācium | |||
| Dative | fallācī | fallācibus | |||
| Accusative | fallācem | fallāx | fallācēs | fallācia | |
| Ablative | fallācī | fallācibus | |||
| Vocative | fallāx | fallācēs | fallācia | ||
Descendants
- Catalan: fal·laç
- Galician: falaz
- Italian: fallace
- Portuguese: falaz
- Spanish: falaz
- English: fallacy
References
- “fallax”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “fallax”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- fallax in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
- Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book, London: Macmillan and Co.
- a fallacious argument; sophism: conclusiuncula fallax or captio
- a fallacious argument; sophism: conclusiuncula fallax or captio