Non sequitur

How it is used

Used to criticize the connection between reasons and a conclusion.

Example sentences

1. Calling the course effective because it was expensive is a non sequitur.

   Price alone does not establish educational effectiveness.

2. The reviewer called our final sentence a non sequitur because the data concerned attendance.

   The conclusion moves beyond what these data address.

Common collocations

• a clear non sequitur
• identify a non sequitur

Related terms

• argumentA position supported by reasons and evidence, or the line of reasoning that runs through an essay, article or thesis.
• conclusionThe final section of a thesis or article that sums up the main findings, their meaning and limitations; also a judgment reached after considering evidence.

More terms: Argument and Hedging

• evidence
• hedging
• argue
• claim
• suggest
• to some extent
• counterargument
• stance
• it could be argued that
• acknowledge
• arguably
• tentative