contradiction
nounattested in dialogue
- United Kingdom//ˌkɒntɹəˈdɪkʃən//
- United States//ˌkɑːntɹəˈdɪkʃən//
The act of contradicting.
noun
- 1
The act of contradicting.
His contradiction of the proposal was very interesting.
- 2
A statement that contradicts itself, i.e., a statement that claims that the same thing is true and that it is false at the same time and in the same senses of the terms.
There is a contradiction in Clarence Page's statement that a woman should have the right to choose and decide for herself whether to have an abortion and at the same time she should not have that right.
There is a contradiction in what you say: she can't be both married and single.
- 3
A logical inconsistency among two or more elements or propositions.
Marx believed that the contradictions of capitalism would lead to socialism.
- 4
A proposition that is false for all values of its propositional variables or Boolean atoms.
Etymology
From Middle English contradiccioun, contradiction, from Old French contradiction, from Latin contrādictiō, from contrādīcō (“speak against”).
Forms
- plural
- contradictions