What does specious mean?
Word: Specious
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Specious means sounding right or reasonable at first, but actually wrong.
How do you spell specious?
Syllables: spe - cious
Tricky part: Spacious, which means roomy, is one vowel away, so pupils write the wrong letter straight after the p.
Watch out for: specius, speacious, spiecious
Memory tip: A specious claim has no Evidence behind it: let that e follow the p.
Specious in a sentence
Example 1: Rahul's specious argument fell apart the moment the teacher asked one question.
Example 2: That advert makes a specious claim about instant fluency in French.
Example 3: It was a specious point, however confidently the speaker made it.
Fun Fact
Latin speciosus meant fair to look at, and English once used specious for anything simply beautiful. The word later turned suspicious of good looks.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is correct. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. falasy 2. plausable 3. cojent 4. specious
a) strong and convincing
b) a mistaken belief
c) seeming true yet failing when examined
d) seeming likely or reasonable
Show answer
c) seeming true yet failing when examined. Specious is the only sound spelling; fallacy, plausible and cogent are the proper forms of the others.
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
spe_i_us
a) c, u
b) s, o
c) t, o
d) c, o
Show answer
d) c, o. The sh sound is made with the letter in special, and the ending is the one in gracious.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
Everyone saw through his uopisesc excuse about the bus leaving ten minutes early.
a) precious
b) spirited
c) spurious
d) specious
Show answer
d) specious. The jumble holds two s's, a c and an o but no r, so just one choice works.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word specious as used in the sentence:
The advertiser's specious reasoning fooled nobody in the consumer club.
a) misleading
b) false
c) valid
d) deceptive
Show answer
c) valid. The reasoning only looks good, so the opposite is reasoning that truly holds up.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A salesman makes a specious claim about a phone battery. What is the problem with it?
a) it is too technical for most buyers
b) it was printed in a small typeface
c) it is too short to hold attention
d) it will not stand up to a careful check
Show answer
d) it will not stand up to a careful check
2. Which is a specious reason for skipping practice?
a) The ground is closed for repairs this week.
b) I have a family wedding on that date.
c) My coach has moved the session to Sunday.
d) Champions need rest, so I need not train at all.
Show answer
d) Champions need rest, so I need not train at all.
