Ad Hominem

Ad hominem: Short for: argumentum ad hominem; The most popular of a long list of Latin terms for logical fallacies or non-rational arguments, Ad hominem refers to the debate technique where one speaker attacks the other, instead of refuting their argument. The basic structure is: She is an objectionable person, therefore everything she says is wrong. It is Latin for: argue with the person. Other examples are:

argumentum ad baculinum - argue with a stick - use of threats to win an argument.

argumentum ad captandum - argue with the herd - appeals to the crowd to win an argument.


argumentum ad crumenam - argue with a purse - asserting that the speaker's wealth makes them right.

argumentum ad ignorantiam - argue with ignorance - since we don't know something is false, it must be true (e.g. UFOs).

argumentum ad lazarum - argue with poverty - asserting that the speaker's poverty makes them right.

Eighteenth-century critics, unconstrained by libel laws, could be savage in their ad hominem attacks.

A Book for Today: Samuel Johnson by Jeffrey Meyers