casuistry
specious, deceptive, or oversubtle reasoning, especially in questions of morality; fallacious or dishonest application of general principles; sophistry.
the application of general ethical principles to particular cases of conscience or conduct.
Origin of casuistry
1Words Nearby casuistry
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use casuistry in a sentence
The earth-is-old-but-man-is-young casuistry of John Piper is not good enough.
The responses were telling in their casuistry, their amorality, their evasiveness.
These questions will not be easily dodged; nor will the faithful be placated by casuistry or platitudes.
This reasoning may seem to many persons mere casuistry, mere sophistical juggling with words.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice | Stephen LeacockHubert Lepel was wonderfully well versed, in subtle turns of argument—in casuistry of the abstruser kind.
A Life Sentence | Adeline Sergeant
He fought for Udal against the same lying spirit of legal casuistry which was to destroy himself.
Sir Walter Ralegh | William StebbingThis, however, may be rejected as mere casuistry, however well it may be intended by zealous friends of the past.
It became fashionable to go to church, and to praise good sermons and read books of casuistry.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume VII | John Lord
British Dictionary definitions for casuistry
/ (ˈkæzjʊɪstrɪ) /
philosophy the resolution of particular moral dilemmas, esp those arising from conflicting general moral rules, by careful distinction of the cases to which these rules apply
reasoning that is specious, misleading, or oversubtle
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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