Editing Weasel word (section)

{{short description|Words or phrases using vague claims to appear meaningful}}
{{For|the specific meaning in Wikipedia|Wikipedia:Weasel word|selfref=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
[[File:Weasel words.svg|thumb|An illustration of a [[weasel]] using "weasel words". In this case, "some people" are a vague and undefined authority.]]

In [[rhetoric]], a '''weasel word''', or '''anonymous authority''', is a word or phrase aimed at creating an impression that something specific and meaningful has been said, when in fact only a vague, ambiguous, or irrelevant claim has been communicated. The terms may be considered [[slang|informal]]. Examples include the phrases "some people say", "it is thought", and "researchers believe". Using weasel words may allow one to later deny (aka weasel out of) any specific meaning if the statement is challenged, because the statement was never specific in the first place. Weasel words can be a form of [[wikt:tergiversate|tergiversation]] and may be used in [[conspiracy theories]], [[advertising]], [[popular science]], [[opinion piece]]s and [[political statement]]s to mislead or disguise a [[bias]]ed view or unsubstantiated claim.

Weasel words can weaken or understate a controversial claim. An example of this is using terms like "somewhat" or "in most respects," which make a sentence more ambiguous than it would be without them.<ref>Jason, Gary (1988) [http://ojs.uwindsor.ca/ojs/leddy/index.php/informal_logic/article/view/2649/2090 "Hedging as a Fallacy of Language"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623193931/http://ojs.uwindsor.ca/ojs/leddy/index.php/informal_logic/article/view/2649/2090 |date=23 June 2018 }}, ''Informal Logic'' X.3, Fall 1988</ref>