1
False claim
Presented as factual even though evidence does not support its truth.
Example
Researchers rejected the spurious claim after examining the raw data.
spurious
/ˈspjʊəriəs/ · SPYOOR-ee-uhsadjective
False, invalid, or not genuine despite appearing plausible.
Use spurious for a claim, correlation, distinction, or object that seems legitimate but lacks a genuine or valid basis.
What spurious Really Means
The word becomes easier to use when its closely related senses are separated and compared.
2
Invalid relationship
Appearing to show a meaningful connection when another factor actually produces the pattern.
Example
The apparent correlation was spurious because both variables had a third cause.
3
Not genuine
Resembling an authentic object, source, or distinction while lacking genuine origin or validity.
Example
The archive identified the supposed royal seal as spurious.
Use spurious Naturally
Notice how the surrounding noun or clause reveals the exact shade of meaning.
Researchers rejected the spurious claim after examining the raw data.
A spurious correlation can disappear when analysts control for a third variable.
The article created a spurious distinction between two nearly identical methods.
Precision Matters
Spurious overlaps with several common words, but each carries a different emphasis.
spurious
vs.Often stresses a deceptive appearance of validity or genuineness.
false
Broadly means untrue or incorrect.
spurious
vs.Can arise accidentally, as with a misleading correlation.
fraudulent
Involves deliberate deception for gain.
spurious
vs.Concludes that the appearance is invalid or not genuine.
apparent
Means seeming to be true and may later prove accurate.
spurious
vs.Has no valid basis or is not genuine.
tenuous
Has a weak or insubstantial basis but is not necessarily false.
Test spurious in Context
The apparent correlation was created by a third factor rather than a direct relationship.
1
Ice-cream sales and reports of sunburn rose together, but temperature independently increased both; once analysts controlled for heat, the supposed relationship proved ___.