Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🧠 Underlying reality 🩸 Settling of fluids 💡 Making a concept
hypostatic

hypostatic

9.9
Relating to treating a quality or action as a separate thing
  • adjective
  • /ˌhaɪpəˈstætɪk/
  • Formal
translation icon : hipostático
  • In linguistics, a hypostatic shift can turn an adjective into a noun.

Examples

  • The philosopher discussed the hypostatic transformation of qualities into independent concepts.

  • The term 'the unknown' is a classic example of a hypostatic use in language.

  • The concept of hypostatic attributes is crucial in philosophy.

  • The hypostatic nature of qualities can lead to misunderstandings.

  • In philosophy, the hypostatic perspective allows us to view qualities as separate entities capable of influencing our understanding.

  • The hypostatic transformation in linguistic theory illustrates how words can evolve from descriptions to distinct nouns.

  • An example of hypostatic usage is when a trait is treated as an independent entity, enhancing clarity in communication.

Compounds

hypostatic union
  • Formal
9.9

The joining of the human and divine natures in Jesus as one person

Surface Forms

hypostatic positive

Morphology

hypostatic = hypostasis (opaque) = hypostasis + ic

The form is derived from 'hypostasis' + '-ic', but the technical philosophical sense of treating an attribute as a distinct entity is not predictable from the parts for most learners.

Etymology

Hypostatic uses the same parts hypo- 'under' and stasis 'standing', and it can mean making a quality into a separate thing. A helpful way to remember this is to imagine a trait or action 'standing' on its own, which is why a hypostatic shift can turn a description into a thing or name.