predicate calculus
- noun
- /ˈprɛdɪkɪt ˈkælkjʊləs/
- Specialized
:
cálculo de predicados
- Over a hundred years ago, the study of language was revolutionized when Gottlob Frege invented the predicate calculus.
Examples
-
In predicate calculus, statements are expressed using symbols that represent objects and their properties.
-
Students learned that predicate calculus is essential for understanding advanced concepts in logic and computer science.
-
The principles of predicate calculus allow mathematicians to clarify logical arguments and statements.
Synonyms
A logic system that uses symbols to show how statements relate, for example using words like 'all' or 'some'
How Powerful
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
7.9
- Specialized
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound is compositionally built: 'calculus' as a formal system or study combined with 'predicate' yields a system concerning predicates and their relations. Although technical, it follows regular noun–noun formation and similar labels exist in other languages, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer the general meaning.
Etymology
Predicate calculus comes from predicate, the part of a sentence that says something about a person or thing, and calculus, a method for careful calculation. So it means a 'system' for working out what statements say about things, for example using symbols to show words like 'all' or 'some', and that's why today predicate calculus names the formal way to reason about such statements.