spurious

adjective

spu·​ri·​ous ˈspyu̇r-ē-əs How to pronounce spurious (audio)
1
: born to parents not married to each other
2
: outwardly similar or corresponding to something without having its genuine qualities : false
the spurious eminence of the pop celebrity
3
a
: of falsified or erroneously attributed origin : forged
b
: of a deceitful nature or quality
spurious excuses
spuriously adverb
spuriousness noun

Did you know?

The classical Latin adjective spurius started out as a word meaning "illegitimate." In the days of ancient Rome, it was sometimes even used as a first name for illegitimate offspring (apparently with no dire effects). There was a certain Spurius Lucretius, for example, who was made temporary magistrate of Rome. In less tolerant times, 18th-century English writer Horace Walpole noted that Henry VII "came of the spurious stock of John of Gaunt." Today, we still use spurious to mean "illegitimate," but the more common meaning is "false" (a sense introduced to spurious in Late Latin). Originally our "false" sense emphasized improper origin, and it still often does ("a spurious signature"), but it can also simply mean "fake" or "not real."

Examples of spurious in a Sentence

One reiterated theme of his book is that the electoral process can be the most dangerous of delusions, tending to confer a spurious legitimacy on those most willing to corrupt it. Hilary Mantel, New York Review, 21 Sept. 2006
Of all the potentially spurious phrases regularly found lurking on book jackets, none should be approached with greater wariness than "This is his first novel." Tony Early, New York Times Book Review, 30 Apr. 2000
I have no special interest in defending modern finance theory, but I think it is important to get this straight, lest Soros's own ideas acquire spurious validity as a practical corrective to academic moonshine. Robert M. Solow, New Republic, 12 Apr. 1999
a spurious Picasso painting that wouldn't have fooled an art expert for a second claimed that the governor's election-year enthusiasm for conservation was spurious, since he had cut funding for state parks
Recent Examples on the Web As such, he was despised by President Vladimir Putin and ultimately jailed on an array of spurious charges, including extremism, for his role as the head of a foundation that exposed corruption. Francesca Ebel, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2024 That leaves the bill looking like a solution seeking a problem, but critics say the goal appears to be more spurious: To prevent Indiana from regulating many non-essential uses of toxic PFAS in the future. Sarah Bowman, The Indianapolis Star, 12 Feb. 2024 Zippel wrote Tuesday night on X that the Jazz took Irving's side and that the team had cited a spurious policy to get the signs taken down. Patrick Smith, NBC News, 4 Jan. 2024 Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine was also justified with spurious references to self-defense and exceptions to the prohibition of the use of force. Agnès Callamard, Foreign Affairs, 15 Feb. 2024 Pop-up windows, ads for spurious products, and links that are sure to download some impossible-to-remove malware are common on the internet. Paolo Confino, Fortune, 18 Jan. 2024 But the presidential election, no matter how spurious, is in three months, and Nadezhdin says someone has to speak up. Keir Simmons, NBC News, 14 Dec. 2023 In another example, a spurious biography of Taiwan’s current president has gone everywhere in a blitz over the past few days, noted Lange. Pranshu Verma, Washington Post, 12 Jan. 2024 There was only the subsequent rupture in reality wrought by these spurious claims, which Moss spent much of Tuesday describing. Charles Bethea, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spurious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin & Latin; Late Latin spurius false, from Latin, of illegitimate birth, from spurius, noun, bastard

First Known Use

circa 1567, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of spurious was circa 1567

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Dictionary Entries Near spurious

Cite this Entry

“Spurious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spurious. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

spurious

adjective
spu·​ri·​ous ˈspyu̇r-ē-əs How to pronounce spurious (audio)
: not genuine or authentic : false
spuriously adverb
spuriousness noun

Medical Definition

spurious

adjective
spu·​ri·​ous ˈspyu̇r-ē-əs How to pronounce spurious (audio)
: simulating a symptom or condition without being pathologically or morphologically genuine
spurious labor pains
spurious polycythemia

More from Merriam-Webster on spurious

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