Socrates

American  

[sok-ruh-teez] / ˈsɒk rəˌtiz /

noun

1. 469?–399 b.c., Athenian philosopher.

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Socrates British  

/ ˈsɒkrəˌtiːz /

noun

1. ?470–399 _bc , Athenian philosopher, whose beliefs are known only through the writings of his pupils Plato and Xenophon. He taught that virtue was based on knowledge, which was attained by a dialectical process that took into account many aspects of a stated hypothesis. He was indicted for impiety and corruption of youth (399) and was condemned to death. He refused to flee and died by drinking hemlock

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Socrates Cultural  

1. An ancient Greek philosopher who was the teacher of Plato.

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Discover More

Socrates said that an oracle of the gods had pronounced him the wisest of all people, because he knew how little he knew.

When Socrates was an old man, the citizens of Athens (see also Athens) condemned him to death, alleging that he denied the reality of the gods and corrupted the youth of Athens. Socrates calmly drank the poison he was given — hemlock — and died a noble death.

The Socratic method of teaching proceeds by question and answer as opposed to lecture.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• anti-Socrates
  adjective
• pro-Socrates
  adjective

Example Sentences

Despite the Athenian democracy’s commitment to free and equal speech, Socrates was found guilty and sentenced to death.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

At Socrates, examples include “A Sea In-MOTION,” a star-shaped assemblage of bamboo fences by the Pioneers Go East Collective; and Natalia Nakazawa’s part-buckyball, part-yurt “Dome Cartographies.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025

It’s a lovely image: Kirk as a modern-day Socrates, wandering the agora of America’s universities seeking to find truth by means of rhetorical contest.

From Salon • Sep. 17, 2025

The HBO adaptation of Walter Mosley’s novel “Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned” starred Fishburne as Socrates Fortlow, an angry ex-convict trying to deal with life outside prison.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2025

“So when are you moving on to the Socrates part of the class?”

From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King