Critical Thinking Concepts

noun a person, place, thing, or idea

verb a word that expresses an action or state of being

preposition a word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence

• She awoke to the sound of birds chirping outside her window.
• I usually awake to my alarm clock blaring in the morning.
• I hate when I awake to my phone blowing up with notifications.
• The company will need to awake to the changing market trends in order to stay competitive.

noun belief

verb to accept something as true or real

adjective believable

adverb believingly

• I believe that the evidence presented supports the theory.
• I believe we should go with the first option.
• I believe we're gonna ace this exam.
• I believe in the power of positive thinking.

noun perception in the absence of judgment with a view to obtaining spiritual direction and understanding

• Her discernment in choosing the right candidate for the job was highly praised by the selection committee.
• I trust your discernment when it comes to picking out the best restaurants in town.
• His discernment in fashion is always on point.
• The artist's discernment in color choices brought the painting to life.

noun a method of reasoning in which general principles are derived from specific observations or examples

• Inductive reasoning is a method of reasoning in which the premises are viewed as supplying some evidence for the truth of the conclusion.
• Using inductive reasoning, we can make educated guesses based on patterns or trends.
• I'm totally using some inductive reasoning to figure out who ate the last slice of pizza.
• Just as a detective uses inductive reasoning to solve a case, we can use it to piece together information and come to a conclusion.

noun a fallacious argument, especially one used deliberately to deceive

• The philosopher dismantled the sophism presented by his opponent with logical reasoning.
• Don't fall for that sophism, it's just a trick to deceive you.
• That sophism is total BS, don't believe a word of it.
• Her argument was like a sophisticated dance of sophisms, weaving in and out of logic and reason.

noun A person who draws conclusions based on evidence or reasoning

• The conclusionist in the research team was responsible for analyzing all the data and drawing final conclusions.
• My friend likes to call himself a conclusionist because he always has a strong opinion on everything.
• I don't trust that conclusionist, he always jumps to conclusions without considering all the facts.
• She was a conclusionist in matters of the heart, always quick to decide if someone was worth her time or not.