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 advocate | A canon lawyer appointed by the Church to argue against the canonization of the proposed candidate. |
Translation
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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
a devil-may-care attitudedevil beating his wifebetter the devil you knowdevil lies in the detailsbetter the devil you know than the one …give the devil his duecaught between the devil and the deep b…idle hands are the Devil's playthingsdevil's luckidle hands are the Devil's workshopBetween the Devil and the Deep Blue Seadevil's shouldersbetter the devil you know than the one …better the devil you know than the devi…
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"devil's advocate." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 22 Jan. 2025. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/devils-advocate_3233>.
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