Tautology may refer to tautology rhetoric, using different words to say the same thing, or a series of selfreinforcing statements that cannot be disproved because they depend on the assumption that they are already correct tautology logic, a technical notion in formal logic, universal unconditioned truth, always valid tautology rule of inference, a rule of replacement. This is the logical notion of tautology, which is very different from the way the term tautology is used in stylistics. In logic, it can be a universal truth that is always valid. Tautology logic, a statement of propositional logic which holds for all truth values of its atomic propositions tautology rhetoric, use of redundant language this disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title tautology. A tautology often involves just a few words in a sentence that have the same meaning, or in which one word is part of the. The word is sometimes used for satire or insult, for example, see the second usage example below. The scandal of tautology chapter 4 coleridge and the philosophy. Tautology definition is needless repetition of an idea, statement, or word. Tautology definition of tautology by merriamwebster. The word tautology was used by the ancient greeks to describe a statement that was asserted to be true merely by virtue of saying the same thing twice, a pejorative meaning that is still used for rhetorical tautologies.
In logic, however, a tautology is defined as a statement that excludes no logical possibilitieseither it is raining or it is not raining. Since it is magical, it can of course only take refuge behind the argument of authority. Basically, find the truth value of each side then plug in a biconditional sign to see if it works subjects. The idea of a tautology being true on every valuation is semantic content. In logic, a tautology is a formula or assertion that is true in every possible interpretation. The notion was first developed in the early 20th century by the american philosopher charles sanders peirce, and the term itself was introduced by the austrianborn british philosopher ludwig wittgenstein. The notion was first developed in the early 20th century by the american philosopher charles sanders peirce, and the term itself was introduced by the austrian. Wikipedia has this to say about a logical tautology. This dictionary is an aid to the readers of muslim philosophical works many of which. Its only a tautology is you pretend life and niches dont have distinguishable properties and that a niche cant be populated an ancient time frame. In literary criticism and rhetoric, a tautology is a statement which repeats an idea, using nearsynonymous morphemes, words or phrases, saying the same thing twice. Mar 01, 2020 tautology countable and uncountable, plural tautologies uncountable redundant use of words, a pleonasm, an unnecessary and tedious repetition. Tautology article about tautology by the free dictionary.
Tautology is useless restatement, or saying the same thing twice using different words. The primitive belief in taboos, affording as it does religious sanctions for moral prohibitions, is of great ethical significance and has even been considered by some to be the origin of morality and ethics. Tautology definition of tautology by the free dictionary. The word tautology is derived from the greek word tauto, meaning the same, and logos, meaning a word or an idea.
A statement that is always true by a virtue of its components. Tautology is the use of different words to say the same thing twice in the same. Like pleonasm, tautology is often considered a fault of style when unintentional. Needless repetition of the same sense in different words. This might involve, for example, taking the presence of an effect to argue for the presence of a cause, which is then claimed to bring. The expression raze to the ground is a tautology, since the word raze includes the notion to the ground.
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents. A tautology is, to define it in a tautological manner, to repeat the same thing twice in different words. Really learn the most useful telephoning phrases download over 100 pages of stimulating selfstudy practice with model dialogues, a detailed answer key, hints, study tips, speaking practice, and preparation for your own reallife telephone calls. An expression that features tautology a statement that is true for all values. A tautology is a repetition, a redundancy, saying the same thing more than once where no additional information is provided. Pdf the philosophy of mathematical information researchgate. Often, repetition is meaningful or poetic and may emphasize an important aspect. It refers to a redundant logic wherein a principle is restated or is evident in its expression. Essentially, a tautology expresses the same thing, idea, or saying repeatedly. Anthropological term of polynesian origin applied to persons or things with which contacts are forbidden under severe social and religious penalties. For examples of meaningful repetition, consider anaphora and epistrophe.
Over 450 entriesa dictionary of logic expands on oxfords coverage of the topic in works such as the oxford dictionary of philosophy. The philosopher ludwig wittgenstein first applied the term to redundancies of. We can determine whether a sentence is a tautology just by using truth tables. Tai chen, tai shenhsiu, 17231777 carne from a poor family, selfmade to be a leader in outstanding intellectual activities of the time, and became an authority in philology, mathematics, geography as well as philosophy.
Tautology is a type of logic construct that can be applied in it. A grammatical tautology refers to an idea repeated. Tautological statement synonyms, tautological statement pronunciation, tautological statement translation, english dictionary definition of tautological statement. Tautology is the repetitive use of phrases or words that have similar meanings. If their biconditional is a tautology, then theyre logically equivalent. Tautological explanations are similarly true by definition, or circular, and therefore unfalsifiable. Its only a tautology is you pretend life and niches dont have distinguishable properties and that a niche cant be populated. Tautology definition, needless repetition of an idea, especially in words other than those of the immediate context, without imparting additional force. Tautology is an unwanted repetition, but not all repetition is pointless. By reinteipreting the teachings of mencius, he attempted to rediscover the original meanings of confucius and mencius. From longman dictionary of contemporary english tautology tau. Dictionary entries encounter an amusing, if predictable, difficulty in arriving at a satisfactory definition. If the sentence is true on every line of a complete truth table, then it is true on every valuation, so it is a tautology. Dictionary of islamic philosophical terms muslim philosophy.
A tautology is a single proposition, not an argument, that is true due to its form alone therefore true in any model. For the second sense of the word, we can say that a sentence is either a tautology or its not. Between 1800 and 1940, the word gained new meaning in logic, and is. Between 1800 and 1940, the word gained new meaning in logic, and is currently used in mathematical logic to denote a certain type of propositional. The oed states only that tautegory is a nonce word. Tautology simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Philosophy a compound propositional form all of whose instances are true. Information and translations of tautology in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. The dawn is overcast, the morning lowers, and heavily in clouds brings on the day. Tautology, in logic, a statement so framed that it cannot be denied without inconsistency. Tautology is the repetitive use of words or phrases which have similar meanings to one another. Tautology meaning in the cambridge english dictionary. Mar 10, 2019 tautology is this verbal device which consists in defining like by like. Tautology definition, needless repetition of an idea, especially in words other than those of the immediate context, without imparting additional force or clearness, as in widow woman. In common parlance, an utterance is usually said to be tautologous if it contains a redundancy and says the same thing twice over in different wordse. A less abstract example is the ball is all green, or the ball is not all green. A repetition of the same meaning in different words.
In simple words, it is expressing the same thing, an idea, or saying, two or more times. Meaning of tautology by lexico oxford english dictionary. Tautology and pleonasm are not consistently differentiated in literature. For example, the statement that britain is an island and surrounded by water is a tautology, since islands are by definition so described. Anaphora is the repetition of a certain phrase at the beginning of successive sentences or phrases. The conception of mathematics as tautological in character, which is based on. Tautology pronunciation in english cambridge dictionary.
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