categorematic
- adjective
- /ˌkætəˈɡɔːrɪˌmætɪk/
- Specialized
:
categoremático
- Articles and conjunctions are not categorematic, but nouns and verbs usually are.
Examples
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A categorematic word, like 'man' or 'walk', can hold meaning on its own in logical analysis.
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In formal logic, only categorematic terms can function as independent subjects or predicates in propositions.
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The word categorematic can stand alone in a sentence.
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In linguistics, a categorematic term can function independently.
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In formal logic, only categorematic terms can function as independent subjects or predicates in propositions.
-
A categorematic word, like 'man' or 'walk', can hold meaning on its own in logical analysis.
-
In linguistics, a categorematic term can function independently.
Synonyms
A word or phrase that has meaning on its own and does not need other words to be understood
Antonyms
- Specialized
A word that cannot stand alone and needs other words to have meaning
How Independent
Surface Forms
Morphology
categorematic = categorem + atic
Contains a technical combining form ('categorem') and the adjective-forming element '-atic', but the base is specialized/rare and not a productive modern English morpheme, so learners cannot reliably derive the meaning from its parts.
Etymology
Categorematic comes from the same root as category, a word for a named group or label, and it originally meant a word that can 'say' something on its own. So a categorematic word can stand alone as the subject or the main action in a sentence, which is why nouns and verbs are usually categorematic while small words only join other words.