so-called
Americanadjective
-
called or designated thus.
the so-called Southern bloc.
-
incorrectly called or styled thus.
so-called intellectuals.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of so-called
First recorded in 1650–60
Explanation
When you say someone is a so-called pacifist, you are suggesting that they are a pacifist in name only. While they are busy making everyone talk about how peaceful they are, chances are they're also bombing villages to dust. Using the word so-called is a great way to point out systemic hypocrisy and is a much-beloved tool of street preachers and conspiracy cranks the world over. They might talk about our so-called democracy being in fact a sham, and our so-called democratic elections being rigged by forces beyond our control.
Vocabulary lists containing so-called
Booked
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The Losers Club
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We Are Displaced
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
An increasing number of Medicaid programs permit the beneficiary or their representative to hire caregivers themselves under so-called self-direction programs.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
Over the next six years, Greece negotiated three bailout loans with the so-called troika—the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund—in return for spending cuts and austerity measures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Italian children have become some of the most overweight in Europe, despite the country being famous for the so-called Mediterranean diet.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
The Justice Department has filed a first-ever petition to a secretive and dormant court created 30 years ago to weigh government requests to deport so-called ‘alien terrorists’ from the United States.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Only in the mid-nineteenth century, after the growth of industrial cities and a rash of urban riots—after dread of the so-called dangerous classes surpassed dread of the state—did police departments emerge in the United States.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
