idolum

noun

ido·​lum

īˈdōləm

plural idola

-lə

1

: eidolon

2

: a form of false thinking : fallacy, idol sense 5

specifically : one of the four varieties of fallacy distinguished by Francis Bacon in his Novum Organum (1620) compare idols of the cave, idols of the forum, idols of the theater, idols of the tribe

Word History

Etymology

in sense 1, from Latin & Greek; Latin, phantom, image, from Greek eidōlon phantom, image, idol; in sense 2, New Latin, from Late Latin, idol, from Greek eidōlon

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