Meaning & use
pseudoscience
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable or uncountable
A set of beliefs or practices that claim to be scientific but are not based on real evidence or proper testing.
Grammar: Can be countable (a pseudoscience) or uncountable (pseudoscience as a general category).
Patterns
- pseudoscience like something
- a form of pseudoscience
- dismiss something as pseudoscience
Astrology is often criticized as a pseudoscience because its predictions cannot be tested.
The course teaches students to tell the difference between real science and pseudoscience.
Many people turn to pseudoscience when they are looking for quick answers.
Word forms
| plural | pseudosciences |
|---|
Common combinations
- dismiss as pseudoscience
- Scientists were quick to dismiss the theory as pseudoscience.
- pure pseudoscience
- The product's claims are pure pseudoscience with no evidence behind them.
- a form of pseudoscience
- Some people consider homeopathy a form of pseudoscience.
- borderline pseudoscience
- The field is often seen as borderline pseudoscience.
Synonyms and how they differ
- junk science
- Junk science is more informal and often suggests deliberately misleading research, while pseudoscience focuses on a false claim to scientific status.
- quackery
- Quackery specifically refers to fraudulent medical practices, whereas pseudoscience can cover any field.
Opposites
Word family
- pseudoscientific adjective
- Describing something that falsely appears scientific.
- pseudoscientist noun
- A person who promotes or practices pseudoscience.
Commonly confused: pseudoscience or pseudoscience vs. science?
pseudoscience vs pseudoscience vs. science
Science follows the scientific method and is open to testing and revision; pseudoscience claims scientific status but lacks these features.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'pseudoscience' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Option 1 is correct because it uses 'pseudoscience' as a countable noun with an example ('like astrology'). Option 0 is wrong because 'breakthrough' implies real science. Option 2 is wrong because a top journal would not publish pseudoscience. Option 3 is wrong because studying pseudoscience would not lead to a career as a chemist.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pseudoscience”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.