Common Logical Fallacies

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Ad Ignorantiam (Appeal to Ignorance)

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Arguing that a claim must be true because it has not been proven false (or vice versa). Example: "No one has ever proven that ghosts aren’t real, so they must exist!"

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Ad Baculum (Appeal to Force)

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Using threats or force to persuade someone instead of logical reasoning. Example: "If you don’t support this policy, you’ll lose your job."

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Undistributed Middle

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Assuming that two things are the same because they share a common property, without proving a direct connection. Example: "All dogs are animals. All cats are animals. Therefore, all dogs are cats."

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Ad Populum (Appeal to Popularity/Bandwagon)

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Arguing that a claim must be true because many people believe it. Example: "Everyone is buying the newest smartphone, so it must be the best one."

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Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc (False Cause)

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Assuming that because one event happened before another, it must have caused the second event. Example: "I wore my lucky socks, and we won the game. My socks must have helped!"

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Secundum Quid (Hasty Generalization)

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Drawing a broad conclusion from a small or unrepresentative sample. Example: "I met two rude tourists from France, so all French people must be rude."

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Straw Man

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Misrepresenting someone’s argument to make it easier to attack. Example: Person A: "We should improve public transportation." Person B: "So you want to ban all cars? That’s ridiculous!"

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Ad Hominem (Personal Attack)

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Attacking the person making the argument instead of addressing the argument itself. Example: "You can’t trust his opinion on climate change; he dropped out of college!"

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Ad Verecundiam (Appeal to Authority)

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Relying on an authority’s opinion rather than evidence, even if the authority is not an expert in the field. Example: "A famous actor says this diet works, so it must be effective."

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False Analogy

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Comparing two things that aren’t truly comparable in order to make a point. Example: "Employees are like nails—you have to hit them hard to make them work."