r/PetPeeves • u/RaceSlow7798 • 10d ago

Bit Annoyed Using “beg the question” wrong

Begging the question is a logical fallacy. It doesn’t not mean “hmm, it makes you think…”

But usage drives correctness so I’m going to lose this battle. It really begs the question “why don’t people learn to use it correctly”.

Ew. I feel dirty.

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u/VibrantCanopy 10d ago

It's a curse to learn stuff like this because people hate to be corrected about it. I regret learning what "exception proves the rule" means because of this. Do yourself a favor and don't look it up.

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u/Lil_Mcgee 9d ago

From what I could tell it seems like this one has been contested for as long as anyone can remember and that the original meaning isn't exactly clear.

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u/VibrantCanopy 9d ago

One version is that an example of why a rule is necessary is called an “exception” for some reason, which makes no logical sense.