philosophaster

American  

[fi-los-uh-fas-ter, fi-los-uh-fas-ter] / fɪˌlɒs əˈfæs tər, fɪˈlɒs əˌfæs tər /

noun

1. a person who has only a superficial knowledge of philosophy or who feigns a knowledge they do not possess.

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Etymology

Origin of philosophaster

First recorded in 1605–15; from Late Latin: “a bit of a philosopher.” See philosopher, -aster ¹

Explanation

A person who pretends to have deep, profound wisdom and knowledge is a philosophaster. This historical insult refers to shallow pseudo-intellectuals who like to hear themselves talk. The word first appeared in the 17th century as a clever linguistic mashup, combining philosoph-, from the Greek word for "lover of wisdom," and -aster, a Latin suffix used to denote a cheap imitation or a fake version of something. While a true philosopher or intellectual dedicates their life to the genuine pursuit of truth, a philosophaster is merely a pretender, one who may use dense, confusing jargon to feign enlightenment and impress anyone who will listen.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

philosophaster

This is all that is wanting,—that a philosophaster like this should lay his impure hands on us, the natural sciences and history!

From Thoughts Out of Season (Part II) by Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm

Do not fear the boldness or the prejudice of any supercilious and base philosophaster, who by either enviously calumniating or stealthily arrogating to himself the investigations of others seeks to snatch a most empty glory.

From On the magnet, magnetick bodies also, and on the great magnet the earth a new physiology, demonstrated by many arguments & experiments by Gilbert, William