tautology
- tautology
The use of words to repeat (unnecessarily) the same statement or meaning. For example, the statement that ‘Britain is an island and surrounded by water’ is a tautology, since islands are by definition so described. Tautological explanations are similarly true by definition, or circular, and therefore unfalsifiable. Sociological explanations which locate the origins of social institutions in their effects tend to take this form. Thus, for example, some early functionalist anthropologists (including Bronislaw
Malinowski ) were prone to argue that, because certain (exotic) social practices (such as witchcraft) existed, then they must have a social function-and that one could assume they had that function precisely because the practices themselves existed.
Dictionary of sociology.
2013.
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Tautology — may refer to: Tautology (rhetoric), using different words to say the same thing even if the repetition does not provide clarity. Tautology also means a series of self reinforcing statements that cannot be disproved because the statements depend… … Wikipedia
Tautology — Tau*tol o*gy, n. [L. tautologia, Gr. ?: cf. F. tautologie.] (Rhet.) A repetition of the same meaning in different words; needless repetition of an idea in different words or phrases; a representation of anything as the cause, condition, or… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
tautology — is the repetition of the same idea or meaning in a phrase or sentence, as in a free gift (all gifts are free), a new innovation, and to return again. Some tautologies are contained within a small group of words such as a noun phrase (e.g. future… … Modern English usage
tautology — I noun battology, duplication, loquacity, pleonasm, profuseness, redundancy, repetition, superfluousness, surfeit, verbiage, verbosity II index redundancy Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
tautology — (n.) 1570s, from L.L. tautologia representation of the same thing (c.350), from Gk. tautologia, from tautologos repeating what has been said, from tauto the same + logos saying, related to legein to say (see LECTURE (Cf. lecture) (n.)) … Etymology dictionary
tautology — *verbiage, redundancy, pleonasm, circumlocution, periphrasis … New Dictionary of Synonyms
tautology — ► NOUN (pl. tautologies) ▪ the saying of the same thing over again in different words, considered as a fault of style (e.g. they arrived one after the other in succession). DERIVATIVES tautological adjective tautologous adjective. ORIGIN from… … English terms dictionary
tautology — [tô täl′ə jē] n. pl. tautologies [LL tautologia < Gr: see TAUTO & LOGY] 1. a) needless repetition of an idea in a different word, phrase, or sentence; redundancy; pleonasm (Ex.: “necessary essentials”) b) an instance of such repetition 2.… … English World dictionary
tautology — tautological /tawt l oj i keuhl/, tautologic, tautologous /taw tol euh geuhs/, adj. tautologically, tautologously, adv. tautologist, n. /taw tol euh jee/, n., pl. tautologies. 1. needless repetition of an idea, esp. in wo … Universalium
tautology — noun /tɔˈtɒl.ə.dʒi/ a) redundant use of words It is tautology to say, Forward Planning . b) An expression that features tautology. The expression raze to the ground is a tautology, since the word raze includes the notion to the ground . Ant … Wiktionary
tautology — Technically, a formula of the propositional calculus that is true whatever the truth value assigned to its constituent propositional variables. (A tautology is thus valid, or true in all interpretations .) In more informal contexts a tautology is … Philosophy dictionary
