Ad nauseam
This article is about the Latin phrase. For the comedy album by Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, see Derek and Clive Ad Nauseam.
Ad nauseam is a Latin term for a discussion that has continued so long that it has continued "to [the point of] nausea".[1][2] For example, the sentence "This topic has been discussed ad nauseam" signifies that the topic in question has been discussed extensively, and that those involved in the discussion have grown tired of it.
Etymology
This term is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary as:
Argumentum ad nauseam or argument from repetition or argumentum ad infinitum is an argument made repeatedly (possibly by different people) until nobody cares to discuss it any more. This may sometimes, but not always, be a form of proof by assertion.
It is not something initially unpleasant until it has been discussed to the point of being so.
See also
- List of Latin phrases
- Ad infinitum
- Ad libitum
- Big Lie (propaganda technique)
- Carthago delenda est
- Filibuster in the United States Senate
- Godwin's law
- Thought-terminating cliché
References
- ↑ "ad nauseam" definitions from Dictionary.com
- ↑ Ehrlich, Eugene (1985). Amo, Amas, Amat and More. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers. p. 25.
External links
The dictionary definition of ad nauseam at Wiktionary
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