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Webster 1913 Edition
Tautology
Tau-tol′o-gy
,Noun.
[L.
tautologia
, Gr. [GREEK]: 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 consequence of itself, as in the following lines: –
The dawn is overcast, the morning lowers,
And heavily in clouds brings on the day.
And heavily in clouds brings on the day.
Addison.
Syn. – Repetition.
–
Tautology
, Repetition
. There may be frequent repetitions (as in legal instruments) which are warranted either by necessity or convenience; but tautology is always a fault, being a sameness of expression which adds nothing to the sense or the sound. Webster 1828 Edition
Tautology
TAUTOL'OGY
,Noun.
A repetition of the same meaning in different words; needless repetition of a thing in different words or phrases; or a representation of any thing as the cause, condition of consequence of itself, as in the following lines.
The dawn in overcast, the morning low'rs,
And heavily in clouds brings on the day.
Definition 2024
tautology
tautology
English
Noun
tautology (countable and uncountable, plural tautologies)
- (uncountable) Redundant use of words.
- It is tautology to say, "Forward Planning".
- (countable) An expression that features tautology.
- The expression "raze to the ground" is a tautology, since the word "raze" includes the notion "to the ground".
- 1946, Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy:
- Pure mathematics consists of tautologies, analogous to ‘men are men’, but usually more complicated.
- (countable, logic) In propositional logic: a statement that is true for all truth values of its propositional variables. In first-order logic: a statement that is true for all truth values of its Boolean atoms.
Antonyms
- (linguistics: expression): contradiction in terms
- (in logic): contradiction
- (literary): oxymoron
Coordinate terms
- (in logic): contingency, contradiction
Derived terms
terms derived from tautology (noun)
Translations
uncountable: redundant use of words
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expression that features tautology
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in logic
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See also
- pleonasm
- redundancy
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Tautology on Wikipedia.Wikipedia