- (prenominal) designated or styled by the name or word mentioned, esp (in the speaker's opinion) incorrectly: a so-called genius
- (also used parenthetically after a noun): these experts, so-called, are no help
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
so-called /ˈsoʊˈkɔld/USA pronunciation
adj. [before a noun]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- called or designated thus:the so-called Southern bloc.
- incorrectly called or styled thus:Her so-called friends are the ones who tempted her to use drugs.
so-called
(sō′kôld′),USA pronunciation adj.
- called or designated thus:the so-called Southern bloc.
- incorrectly called or styled thus:so-called intellectuals.
- 1650–60
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
so-called adj
'so-called' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
adjutant bird
- amadou
- amphibole
- anabaena
- antirrhinum
- Atlantic
- barn
- Black Isle
- Black Watch
- blende
- boulevard
- bubble and squeak
- bullfinch
- bumbailiff
- burnet
- Campin
- campion
- cannel coal
- cat's-paw
- cetane
- cholesterol
- choline
- colure
- consommé
- coreopsis
- coronavirus
- coronation chicken
- court plaster
- cravat
- dolerite
- éclair
- entrée
- espadrille
- fluor
- folic acid
- foolscap
- framboesia
- francium
- gallipot
- gooseflesh
- Harijan
- heptane
- herb Paris
- Hessian fly
- horse chestnut
- housey-housey
- hydrogen
- jarhead
- kopeck
- Lias