sophistication

[suh-fis-ti-key-shuh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sophistication ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

sophisticated character, ideas, tastes, or ways as the result of education, worldly experience, etc.: the sophistication of the wealthy.

change from the natural character or simplicity, or the resulting condition.

complexity, as in design or organization.

impairment or debasement, as of purity or genuineness.

the use of sophistry; a sophism, quibble, or fallacious argument.

Origin of sophistication

1350–1400; Middle English < Medieval Latin sophisticātiōn- (stem of sophisticātiō), equivalent to sophisticāt(us) (see sophisticate) + -iōn- -ion

Related formsan·ti·so·phis·ti·ca·tion, nounhy·per·so·phis·ti·ca·tion, nouno·ver·so·phis·ti·ca·tion, nounself-so·phis·ti·ca·tion, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for sophistication

finesse, composure, tact, poise, elegance, refinement, worldliness, urbanity

Examples from the Web for sophistication

Contemporary Examples of sophistication

His dresses were worn by Hollywood stars and first ladies, emanating glamour and sophistication.
Fashion Designer Oscar de la Renta, American Great, Dead at 82
Tim Teeman
October 21, 2014
This Palmer stands for elegance and sophistication: the embodiment of natural gifts, both athletic and personal.
Will the Real Jim Palmer Please Stand Up
Tom Boswell
September 27, 2014
Jazz is now a codeword for sophistication and classiness, even affluence.
Jazz (The Music of Coffee and Donuts) Has Respect, But It Needs Love
Ted Gioia
June 15, 2014
And if Tocqueville is right, then Piketty is mistaken, despite the impressive scope and sophistication of his work.
What’s At Stake In The Tocqueville/Piketty Debate
James Poulos
April 27, 2014
The age of the airplane does not, however, determine the sophistication of the search equipment on board.
Was MH370 Carrying Killer Cargo?
Clive Irving
March 21, 2014

Historical Examples of sophistication

But he was resolved to use his best skill to disarm her sophistication.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
With all her sophistication, Tillie was vastly ignorant of life.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
She chattered with the childish artlessness that at times veiled her sophistication.
The Highgrader
William MacLeod Raine
It will perhaps not do to say that it is altogether a matter of sophistication.
An Inquiry Into The Nature Of Peace And The Terms Of Its Perpetuation
Thorstein Veblen
Her expression, her voice, her lack of sophistication, all had the limpidity of water.
The Dust Flower
Basil King

Word Origin and History for sophistication

early 15c., "use of sophistry; fallacious argument intended to mislead; adulteration; an adulterated or adulterating substance," from Medieval Latin sophisticationem (nominative sophisticatio), noun of action from past participle stem of sophisticare "adulterate, cheat quibble," from Latin sophisticus "of sophists," from Greek sophistikos "of or pertaining to a sophist," from sophistes "a wise man, master, teacher" (see sophist). Meaning "wordly wisdom, refinement, discrimination" is attested from 1850.