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[[File:Bürger Dresdens gegen WOBA Verkauf - Argumente von Bürgern.jpg|thumb|230px|Citizen making an argument at a town meeting.]]
{{hatnote|This article is about "argument" as it relates to logic and philosophy. It is not about disagreement or pieces of information passed in computer code.}}
A '''argument''' is a way to persuade someone of something. Reasons are given to accept the conclusion.<ref>[http://www.iep.utm.edu/argument/ Argument, Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.] "In everyday life, we often use the word "argument" to mean a verbal dispute or disagreement. This is not the way this word is usually used in philosophy. However, the two uses are related. Normally, when two people verbally disagree with each other, each person attempts to convince the other that his or her viewpoint is the right one. Unless he or she merely results to name calling or threats, he or she typically presents an argument for his or her position, in the sense described above. In philosophy, arguments are those statements a person makes in the attempt to convince someone of something, or present reasons for accepting a given conclusion".</ref><ref name=Ralph>Johnson, Ralph H. 2000 ''Manifest rationality: a pragmatic theory of argument''. New Jersey: Erlbaum, 46-49.</ref> The general structure of an argument in a [[natural language]] is that [[premise]]s ([[proposition]]s or [[statement]]s) support the claim or conclusion.<ref name=Ralph/><ref>''The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy'', 2nd ed. 1995: "Argument: a sequence of statements such that some of them (the premises) purport to give reason to accept another of them, the conclusion"</ref><ref>[http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/logic-classical/#3  Stanford Enc. Phil., ''Classical Logic'']</ref>

The strength and validity of arguments can be evaluated based on the factors such as relevance and truth of the premises, the logical structure connecting premises to the conclusion, and the overall coherence of the argument. 

==Reason==
An argument is a [[wikt:Reason|Reason]] to support an opinion. 

There can be a "strong argument" or a "convincing argument" (for example, a good reason for why something should be done). '''Arguing''' is the [[process]] of conducting an argument.

The [[opposite]] is a "weak argument" or an "unconvincing argument". Arguments can be [[wikt:valid|valid]] or [[wikt:invalid|invalid]] or a [[wikt:combination|combination]] of both.  Some arguments may appear reasonable, but they turn out to be misleading or wrong.<ref>Blakesley, David and Jeffrey L. Hoogeveen. (2007). [https://books.google.com/books?id=Qavqk92uRGYC&pg=PA209&dq=  ''The Thomson Handbook,'' p. 209].</ref>

== Related pages ==
*[[Implication and inference]]
*[[Cosmological argument]]
*[[Dialectic]]
*[[Deductive reasoning]]
*[[Inductive reasoning]]
*[[Fallacy]]
*[[Thought|Reasoning]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Other websites==
{{wiktionary|argument}}
{{Commons category-inline|Argument maps}} 

[[Category:Basic English 850 words]]
[[Category:Mathematics]]
[[Category:Human communication]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]