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Meaning & use

falsity

noun·Advancedformal

Last updated

UK/ˈfɔːl.sə.ti/
US/ˈfɔːl.sə.t̬i/

Meanings

  1. noununcountableformal

    The fact or condition of not being true or real.

    Grammar: Uncountable and followed by of: the falsity of the claim.

    Patterns

    • the falsity of something

    The investigator proved the falsity of the rumor.

    Nobody doubted the falsity of his alibi once the videos surfaced.

    She was struck by the falsity of his smile.

  2. nouncountableformalrare

    A statement, belief, or idea that is untrue.

    Grammar: Countable in this sense: a falsity, many falsities.

    The article contained several falsities about the company.

    He repeated old falsities to anyone who would listen.

    History books once contained comfortable falsities.

Word forms

pluralfalsities

Common combinations

the falsity of a claim
The court established the falsity of the claim.
prove the falsity
Lawyers tried to prove the falsity of the statement.
expose the falsity
The report exposed the falsity of their advertising.
obvious falsity
The obvious falsity of the story made people laugh.
truth or falsity
The test checks the truth or falsity of each statement.

Synonyms and how they differ

untruth
Untruth names a particular untrue statement and is gentler than lie.
falsehood
Falsehood is more common than falsity for a specific untrue statement, while falsity is better for the quality of being untrue.
inaccuracy
Inaccuracy suggests an error or imprecision, not necessarily a complete untruth.
insincerity
Insincerity is about pretended feelings, whereas falsity can describe facts as well.

Opposites

truthaccuracy

Word family

false adjective
not true or not real
falsely adverb
in a way that is untrue
falsify verb
to change something to deceive
falsehood noun
an untrue statement
falseness noun
the quality of being false or insincere

Commonly confused: falsity or falsehood? falsity or fallacy?

falsity vs falsehood

A falsehood is a specific untrue statement, but falsity usually names the quality of being untrue.

falsity vs fallacy

A fallacy is a mistaken belief or flawed argument, whereas falsity is simply the state of being untrue.

Practice

The defense team set out to demonstrate the ___ of the witness's testimony.

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