Fallacy test

tu quoque

You avoided having to engage with criticism by turning it back on the accuser - you answered criticism with criticism .

the texas sharpshooter

You cherry - picked a data cluster to suit your argument , or found a pattern to fit a presumption .

strawman

You misrepresented someone's argument to make it easier to attack

loaded question

You asked a question that had a presumption built into it so that it couldn't be answered without appearing guilty .

no true scotsman

You made what could be called an appeal to purity as a way to dismiss relevant criticisms or flaws of your argument .

personal incredulity

Because you found something difficult to understand , or are unaware of how it works , you made out like it's probably not true .

slippery slope

You said that if we allow A to happen , then Z will eventually happen too , therefore A should not happen .

middle ground

You claimed that a compromise , or middle point , between two extremes must be the truth

the gambler's fallacy

You said that ' runs ' occur to statistically independent phenomena such as roulette wheel spins .

genetic

You judged something as either good or bad on the basis of where it comes from , or from whom it came

false cause

You presumed that a real or perceived relationship between things means that one is the cause of the other .

special pleading

You moved the goalposts or made up an exception when your was shown to be false .

the fallacy fallacy

You presumed that because a claim has been poorly argued , or a fallacy has been made , that the claim itself must be wrong .

composition/division

You assumed that one part of something has to be applied to all or other , parts of it ; or that the whole must apply to its parts .

begging the question

You presented a circular argument in which the conclusion was included in the premise .

burden of proof

You said that the burden of proof lies not with the person making the claim , but with someone else to disprove

bandwagon

You appealed to popularity or the fact that many people do something as an attempted form of validation .

black - or - white

You presented two alternative states as the only possibilities , when in fact more possibilities exist

appeal to nature

You argued that because something is ' natural ' it is therefore valid , justified , inevitable good or ideal .

appeal to authority

You said that because an authority thinks something , it must therefore be true .

ad hominem

You attacked your opponent's character or personal traits in an attempt to undermine their argument

appeal to emotion

You attempted to manipulate an emotional response in place of a valid or compelling argument

ambiguity

You used a double meaning or ambiguity of language to mislead or misrepresent the truth .

anecdotal

You used a personal experience or an isolated example instead of a sound argument or compelling evidence .

Appeal to Ignorance

Claiming that a statement must be true because there's no evidence against it .

Red Herring

A misleading argument or question is presented to distract from the main issue or argument at hand

Hasty Generalization

Drawing expansive conclusions based on inadequate or insufficient evidence .

Non sequitur

A statement or conclusion that does not follow logically from what preceded it .

Gish Gallop

Overwhelming an interlocutor with as many arguments as possible , without regard for accuracy or Strength of the arguments

Appeal to Intuition

Evaluating an argument based on "intuition" or "gut feeling" that is unable to be articulated , rather than evaluating the argument using reason

Hypnotic Bait and Switch

Stating several uncontroversially true statements in succession , followed by a claim that the arguer wants the audience to accept true .

Magical Thinking

Making causal connections or correlations between two events not based on logic or evidence , but primarily based on superstition

Deceptive Sharing

Sharing an article post , or meme on social media with the intent to influence public perception to perceive a statistically rare event as a common event .

Argument from Silence

Drawing a conclusion based on the silence of the opponent , when the opponent is refusing to give evidence for any reason .

Appeal to Coincidence

Concluding that a result is due to chance when the evidence strongly suggests otherwise

Fantasy Projection

Confusing subjective experiences , usually very emotionally charged , with objective reality , then suggesting or demanding that others accept the subjective experience as objective reality

Retrospective Determinism

Arguing that because something happened , it was inevitable .

Inflation of Conflict

Assumes that the instances wher scholars and scientists have differing opinions on something calls the credibility of the antire field into question

Appeal to Tradition

Arguing that a thesis must be correct because it has traditionally been so .

Argument from Repetition

Repeating a statement often in the hopes that the listener will begin to accept it as truth instead of providing evidence

Argument from Age

The misconception that previous generations had superior wisdom to modern people - so conclusions that rely on this wisdom are more true than they actually are .

Appeal to Closure

Accepting evidence on the basis of wanting closure or to be done with the issue .

Appeal to Desperation

Arguing that your conclusion solution ar proposition is right based on the fact that something must be done , and your solution is " something "

Appeal to Faith

An abandonment of reason in an argument and a call to faith , usually when reason clearly leads to disproving the conclusion of an argument .

Self - Righteousness Fallacy

Assuming that just because your intentions are good you have the truth or facts on your side

Wishful Thinking

When the desire for something to be true is used in place offer as evidence for the truthfulness of the claim

False Equivalence

Claiming two completely opposing arguments appear to be logically equivalent when in fact they are not

Psychogenetic Fallacy

Inferring some psychological reason why an argument is made then assuming it is invalid . as a result .