Field guide · 27 fallacies indexed

A field guide to flawed reasoning and how to argue more clearly.

A numbered reference of 27 common logical fallacies, sorted into five families. Every entry names the pattern, walks through a worked example, and shows a plain-English way to respond.

01Appeals & Emotional Manipulation

Arguments that lean on feelings, popularity, or authority instead of the evidence.

001 Bandwagon (Appeal to Popularity) ad populum 002 Appeal to Authority ad verecundiam 003 Appeal to Pity ad misericordiam 016 Appeal to Fear ad baculum 017 Appeal to Novelty ad novitatem 018 Appeal to Tradition ad antiquitatem

02Attacks & Relevance

Mistakes that go after the person or sidestep the point actually being made.

004 Ad Hominem argumentum ad hominem 005 Tu Quoque (You Too) tu quoque 006 Straw Man 019 Guilt by Association 020 Poisoning the Well 021 Genetic Fallacy

03Distraction & Misdirection

Moves that pull the discussion away from the claim on the table.

007 Red Herring ignoratio elenchi 008 Whataboutism 009 Moving the Goalposts 022 False Dilemma 023 Non Sequitur non sequitur 024 False Equivalence

04Ambiguity & Vagueness

Sloppy or shifting word choices that let a claim mean whatever it needs to mean.

010 Equivocation 011 Amphiboly 012 No True Scotsman 025 Motte-and-Bailey 026 Loaded Question 027 Weasel Words

05Presumption & False Cause

Arguments built on assumptions, weak samples, or faulty cause-and-effect.

013 Slippery Slope 014 False Cause (Post Hoc) post hoc ergo propter hoc 015 Hasty Generalization