Fallacy · Rigging the question
No true Scotsman
Also called: Redefining to dodge a counterexample
Protecting a generalization by redefining the group to exclude any counterexample.
What it is
When a claim like “no X does Y” meets an X who does Y, the honest options are to weaken the claim or give it up. The fallacy instead declares that the counterexample was not a real X, so the claim can never be wrong, and so says nothing.
An example
“No real fan would leave a match early.” “My uncle has had a season ticket for forty years and left early on Saturday.” “Then he’s not a real fan.”
How to spot it
The definition of the group changes the moment someone offers a counterexample.
How to answer it
“What would count as a real fan, decided before we look at the cases?”
When it is not a fallacy
Definitions can be fair when they are set out in advance and applied evenly, not invented to fit the case.
Printable sheet of all fallacies
Cite or share this page
A plain reference you can paste into notes or an essay:
Quest2Reason. “No true Scotsman.” https://quest2reason.com/learn/ideas/fallacies/no-true-scotsman. Accessed 13 November 2026.