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

• anti-Socrates
  adjective
• pro-Socrates
  adjective

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Socrates

As James Madison put it, “Had every Athenian citizen been a Socrates, every Athenian assembly would still have been a mob.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

Certainly from the Classical Period — that is, roughly the time of Pericles and Socrates — Greeks understood the Homeric poems as their founding myths.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

The question of democratic rage is timeless, and Mr. Turley’s historical narrative is sweeping—from the trial of Socrates to the rhetoric of Huey Long.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026

The Socrates Award, which is a humanitarian one, went to the Xana Fundacion, which was set up by Luis Enrique's family in memory of his daughter who died from bone cancer aged nine in 2019.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2025

Behind her, edging in like he’s about to order a drink, is Frank Socrates.

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

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