Word Finder - captious

definition

That captures; especially, (of an argument, words etc.) designed to capture or entrap in misleading arguments; sophistical.

synonyms

• sophistical
• thorny
• tricky

definition

Having a disposition to find fault unreasonably or to raise petty objections; cavilling, nitpicky.

synonyms

• carping
• critical
• faultfinding
• hypercritical
• nitpicky

The captious logic of the Megarian school was indeed in some cases closely related to sceptical results.

The most foolish and discreditable was certainly that of Davies; his unworthy attempt to depreciate the great historian's learning, and his captious, cavilling, acrimonious charges of petty inaccuracies and discreditable falsification gave the object of his attack an easy triumph.

After a tedious and captious examination, he was in March brought before convocation, and, on refusing to subscribe certain articles, was excommunicated and imprisoned; but through the interference of the king he was finally released after he had voluntarily signified his acceptance of all the articles except two, and confessed that he had erred not only " in discretion but in doctrine."

Hipparchus, the famous astronomer, on the other hand, (c. 150 B.C.) proved a somewhat captious critic. He justly objected to the arbitrary network of the map of Eratosthenes.

The first muttering of the storm which was soon to break was heard in a breve issued in 1741 by Benedict XIV., wherein he denounced the Jesuit offenders as "disobedient, contumacious, captious and reprobate persons," and enacted many stringent regulations for their better government.

His name has been preserved chiefly by some celebrated, though false and captious, syllogisms of which he was the reputed author.