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devil's advocate

One who debates from a view which they may not actually hold, usually to determine its validity, or simply for the sake of argument.

Etymology:

  • From devil's advocate, a calque of Latin advocātus diabolī.
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Submitted on September 01, 2009

Additional definitions for 'devil's advocate':

devil's advocateA canon lawyer appointed by the Church to argue against the canonization of the proposed candidate.
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Translation

Find a translation for the devil's advocate phrase in other languages:

diablo advokato

abogado del diablo

l'avocat du diable

魔鬼代言人

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Nearby phrases

Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to devil's advocate

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Seaidle hands are the devil's toolsangel's advocatespeak of the devildevil lies in the detailsa devil-may-care attitudeidle hands are the devil's workshopbetter the devil you knowdevil beating his wifebetter the devil you know than the devi…speak of the devil and he appearsidle hands are a devil's toolsdevil is in the detailsfolk devil

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