Devil's Advocate
noun
unpunctuated: devils advocate
1. a person who expresses a contentious opinion in order to provoke debate or test the
strength of the opposing arguments.
"the interviewer will need to play devil's advocate, to put the other side's case forward"
o HISTORICAL
a person appointed by the Roman Catholic Church to challenge a
proposed beatification or canonization, or the verification of a miracle.
The phrase "playing devil's advocate" describes a situation where someone, given a
certain point of view, takes a position they do not necessarily agree with
Where does the expression devil's advocate come from?
At one time the Roman Catholic Church had an official position that was termed the devil's
advocate. The job entailed finding and presenting negative information on a person who
passed away and was being considered for canonization. The idea was to present all the
positive things the person did with negative as well.
Is playing the devil's advocate a good thing?
Playing devil's advocate can be a very helpful thing when done for the right reasons. By
presenting and arguing a counter opinion, it can help people to see a different perspective
and educate them on how other people think. It can be very helpful in preparing for a
debate, understanding a sales market, or getting someone prepared to make a decision.
What does it mean to play the devil's advocate?
Playing devil's advocate means to argue or present the opinions of the opposite side even
though the person doesn't agree with the opinion they are presenting. In order for someone
to be playing devil's advocate, they must be arguing or presenting a position that is the
opposite of what they actually believe.
Teachers often play devil's advocate to provoke discussion in the
classroom.
The idiom devil’s advocate refers to a person who argues against the popular
opinion of a group to foster discussion. This person doesn’t have to believe in
what they are arguing; rather, they will argue for the purpose of presenting a new
point of view.
The term was first used in the 1500s, when the church would appoint someone to
argue against a canonization candidate. The “advocatus diaboli,” or devil’s
advocate, would try to find holes in stories about a candidate’s character and
their supposed miracles. This would allow the church to have a well-rounded
view of the candidate during the decision-making process.
How to use “devil’s advocate”
“Devil’s advocate” is a noun used to describe a contrary position someone is
taking. As an idiom, “devil’s advocate” doesn’t literally refer to someone who is
advocating for the devil, but someone who is arguing against a popular notion.
You use “devil’s advocate” when describing someone who is picking holes in an
argument or bringing up a train of thought that directly conflicts with common
opinion (e.g., “She is playing devil’s advocate”).
The phrase “devil’s advocate” is usually preceded by the verb “playing” (e.g.,
“Randy is playing devil’s advocate”) or by “playing” + “the” (e.g., “My teacher
loves to play the devil’s advocate”).
To ‘play the Devil's Advocate’ is to bring up the unpopular opposing
viewpoint and argue in it's favor. It's from the argument made that maybe
the devil had a point, that angels deserved souls as well as humans, and that
God was playing favorites.
