pseudoscience

American  

[soo-doh-sahy-uhns] / ˌsu doʊˈsaɪ əns /

noun

1. any of various methods, theories, or systems, as astrology, psychokinesis, or clairvoyance, considered as having no scientific basis.

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pseudoscience British  

/ ˌsjuːdəʊˈsaɪəns /

noun

1. a discipline or approach that pretends to be or has a close resemblance to science

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pseudoscience Cultural  

1. A system of theories or assertions about the natural world that claim or appear to be scientific but that, in fact, are not. For example, astronomy is a science, but astrology is generally viewed as a pseudoscience.

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Other Word Forms

• pseudoscientific adjective
• pseudoscientifically adverb
• pseudoscientist noun

Etymology

Origin of pseudoscience

First recorded in 1835–45; pseudo- + science

Example Sentences

‘We acted like we know all these answers, but actually we don’t. Most of this stuff is approximations. And it’s almost like pseudoscience in a way.’

From MarketWatch • Mar. 18, 2026

Here, then, is a sampling of predictions, which range from the discredited to pseudoscience to the bizarre.

From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026

Now, as chronic Lyme emerges from its era of hazy theories and pseudoscience, it continues to be tainted with its previous associations.

From Slate • Dec. 19, 2025

In the early ‘90s, authors William Strauss and Neil Howe, who were credited with coining the term “millennials,” took generational labels deep into the realm of pseudoscience.

From Salon • Dec. 19, 2025

Numerology, especially in its soothsaying and divinatory aspects, is in many ways a typical pseudoscience.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos