A precising definition is a definition that contracts or reduces the scope of the lexical definition of a term for a specific purpose by including additional criteria that narrow down the set of things meeting the definition.
For example, a dictionary may define the term "student" as "1. anyone attending an educational institution of any type, or 2. anyone who studies something." However, a movie theater may propose a precising definition for the word "student" of "any person under the age of 18 enrolled in a local school" in order to determine who is eligible to receive discounted tickets.
Precising definitions are generally used in contexts where vagueness is unacceptable; many legal definitions are precising definitions, as are company policies. This type of definition is useful in preventing disputes that arise from the involved parties using different definitions of the term in question.
A precising definition is intended to make a vague word more precise so that the word's meaning is not left to the interpretation of the reader or listener. Here is an example:
From a class syllabus: "Class participation" means attending class, listening attentively, answering and asking questions, and participating in class discussions.
This is similar to a stipulative definition, but differs in that a stipulative definition may contradict the lexical definition, while a precising definition does not.
Bassham, Gregory; Irwin, William; Nardone, Henry; Wallace, James M. (2002). Critical Thinking: A Student's Introduction. New York: McGraw Hill.
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Kinds of Definition
April 11, 2024
precising, definition, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, augu. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Precising definition news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2014 Learn how and when to remove this template message A precising definition is a definition that contracts or reduces the scope of the lexical definition of a term for a specific purpose by including additional criteria that narrow down the set of things meeting the definition For example a dictionary may define the term student as 1 anyone attending an educational institution of any type or 2 anyone who studies something However a movie theater may propose a precising definition for the word student of any person under the age of 18 enrolled in a local school in order to determine who is eligible to receive discounted tickets Precising definitions are generally used in contexts where vagueness is unacceptable many legal definitions are precising definitions as are company policies This type of definition is useful in preventing disputes that arise from the involved parties using different definitions of the term in question A precising definition is intended to make a vague word more precise so that the word s meaning is not left to the interpretation of the reader or listener Here is an example From a class syllabus Class participation means attending class listening attentively answering and asking questions and participating in class discussions This is similar to a stipulative definition but differs in that a stipulative definition may contradict the lexical definition while a precising definition does not See also editPersuasive definitionFurther reading editBassham Gregory Irwin William Nardone Henry Wallace James M 2002 Critical Thinking A Student s Introduction New York McGraw Hill External links editKinds of Definition Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Precising definition amp oldid 1048773724, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
