unfalsifiability
|un-fals-i-fi-a-bi-li-ty|
🇺🇸
/ˌʌnˌfɔːlsɪfəˈbɪlɪti/
🇬🇧
/ˌʌnˌfɒlsɪfəˈbɪlɪti/
not able to be proven false
Etymology
'unfalsifiability' originates from English, specifically formed from the prefix 'un-' + 'falsifiability', where 'un-' meant 'not' and 'falsifiability' derives from Latin 'falsificare' (through English 'falsify' + the suffix '-ability').
'falsificare' (Latin) produced Late Latin/Old French forms that led to English 'falsify'; English then formed 'falsifiability' (falsify + -ability), and modern English created 'unfalsifiability' by adding the negative prefix 'un-'.
Initially the components meant 'not' (un-) and 'to make false/deceive' (from Latin roots); the compound has come to mean specifically 'not able to be proven false', and in scientific philosophy it has taken on a technical sense signaling non-scientific or pseudoscientific claims.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the quality or condition of being incapable of being shown to be false; inability to be refuted by evidence or experiment.
The theory's unfalsifiability made it difficult to evaluate scientifically.
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Noun 2
in philosophy of science, the characteristic of a hypothesis or claim that prevents it from being tested empirically, often used to mark pseudoscientific statements.
Popper criticized pseudoscientific doctrines for their unfalsifiability.
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Last updated: 2025/12/24 23:35