Meaning & use
predication
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Meanings
noununcountablespecialist
In grammar, the part of a sentence that tells something about the subject, or the act of making that statement.
Grammar: Used mainly in linguistics: predication links a subject with what is said about it.
Patterns
- predication of something
In the sentence The sky is gray, the predication is is gray.
The textbook explains predication with simple diagrams.
Linguists debate how languages mark predication without a verb.
noununcountabletechnical
In logic and philosophy, the act of asserting that a property or quality belongs to something.
Grammar: Often followed by of: predication of a quality to a thing.
Patterns
- predication of something to something
Predication of goodness to an action is a moral claim.
The philosopher questioned whether predication of existence adds anything to a concept.
Common combinations
- predication of
- Predication of a property to an object is the basis of this theory.
- secondary predication
- Secondary predication adds a second description, as in she left angry.
- logic of predication
- The logic of predication is covered in the first chapter.
- theory of predication
- Her thesis proposes a new theory of predication.
Synonyms and how they differ
- assertion
- Assertion is the broad everyday word for stating something, whereas predication is the specific grammatical or logical act of attaching a property to a subject.
- attribution
- Attribution means crediting a quality or action to someone, and is wider and less technical than predication.
- predicate
- Predicate names the part of the sentence itself, while predication is the act or relationship of saying it.
Word family
- predicate noun
- the part of a sentence that says something about the subject
- predicate verb
- to base an idea on something, or to assert
- predicative adjective
- used in the predicate, as with an adjective after a linking verb
- predicable adjective
- able to be stated of a subject
Commonly confused: predication or prediction?
predication vs prediction
Prediction is a statement about the future; predication is the act of saying something about a subject.
Practice
In the sentence The soup is cold, which word group shows the predication?
Choose one answer.
The predication is what is said about the subject, here is cold. The soup is the subject itself, and the other options split the sentence at the wrong place.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “predication”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.