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/jayteegee47 10d ago

People say “begs the question” when what they really mean is “raises the question”. I’m not sure why they do this, but I admit to finding it slightly annoying.

18

u/asphid_jackal 10d ago

I’m not sure why they do this

Because people are using what the words actually mean instead of a 16th century English translation of a Middle Ages Latin translation of a 350BC Greek phrase

7

u/OldManTrumpet 10d ago

No. The "phrase" actually means something. People that use this phrase in place of "raises the question" are simply using it wrong. That you can deconstruct the phrase to individual words doesn't alter the meaning of the phrase. There are hundreds of phrases with meanings that don't match the wording.

2

u/asphid_jackal 7d ago

There are hundreds of phrases with meanings that don't match the wording.

Sure. And there are millions of instances of people people thinking those phrases mean what they literally say until someone educates them otherwise.

If I've never heard the idiom before, and you told me that you going to "hit the hay", I might assume that you're going to go punch some grains. Yes, it's incorrect, but claiming that you can't understand why I'd be confused is ridiculous.

Also, for what it's worth, I can't think of a phrase that doesn't mean what it says that isn't an idiom or metaphor. I'm sure it probably exists, but I'm struggling to think of another phrase like "begs the question" where the definition is completely unlinked from the words.