different between cactoid vs factoid

English

Noun

cactoid (plural cactoids)

1. A member of the cactus subfamily Cactoideae.
2. (topology) A locally connected continuum that is the closure of the union of an at most countable number of spheres and simple arcs, of which every simple closed contour is contained in one and only one of the spheres.

Anagrams

• octadic

English

Etymology

From fact +? -oid (“similar, but not the same”); coined by American writer Norman Mailer in 1973 in Marilyn: A Biography, defined as "facts which have no existence before appearing in a magazine or newspaper, creations which are not so much lies as a product to manipulate emotion in the Silent Majority".

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?fækt??d/

Noun

factoid (plural factoids)

1. An inaccurate statement or statistic believed to be true because of broad repetition, especially if cited in the media. [from 1973]

   Synonym: misconception

   Coordinate term: urban legend
2. (originally Canada, US) An interesting item of trivia; a minor fact.

   Synonym: factlet

   • 2013, Nancy Duarte, Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences, John Wiley & Sons (?ISBN)

     Don't parade in front of the audience spewing every factoid you know on your topic. Only share the right information for that exact moment with that specific audience.

Translations

Usage notes

The more recent and contradictory meaning “minor fact” is gradually supplanting the original sense.

Further reading

• “factoid”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.
• factoid on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

References