Chapter 2: Glossary.
This glossary follows the organization of the textbook and
other areas of this Web site and contains short definitions for all the important terms
and concepts from the chapter. You will also find hyperlinks to Websites relevant to the
study of these terms and concepts. You should employ good critical thinking when
evaluating the merit of any information you find on the World Wide Web, including what you
find by following
these links.
Ambiguity. The openness of a word or claim to more than one interpretation; the quality of possessing more than one meaning.
Argumentative Essay. A work of nonfiction prose that
aims at stating and defending a position on some issue.
Definition by analysis. A definition that breaks a term down into its essential elements.
Definition by example. A definition that provides a representative example of a term.
Definition by synonym. A definition that explains a term by means of a word or phrase that has the same meaning.
Emotive force. Also known as "connotation"; the overtones of feeling that a word arouses, as separate from its literal meaning (extension or intention).
Explanatory definition. A definition intended to elucidate some feature of a complex concept.
Extension. The set of all things to which a word or phrase refers; also known as "denotation." The extension of "U.S. automotive producer" is "Chrysler, Ford, General Motors."
Fallacy of composition. The mistaken assumption that
what holds true for the members of a group, taken separately, will hold true of the group
taken together.
Fallacy of division. The mistaken assumption that what
holds true of a group, considered as a whole, will hold true of all its members taken
separately.
Grouping ambiguity. A type of semantical ambiguity that consists of referring to a group of individuals without clarifying whether one means the group as a whole or the members in it taken separately.
Intension. The set of qualities of a thing that make a given word or phrase refer to it; also know as "sense" (and not to be confused with intention, what someone means to say or do). The intension of "U.S. automobile producer" is "a company engaged in manufacturing automobiles, with its corporate headquarters in the United States.
Mean. A type of average arrived at by adding up a group of numbers and dividing by the number of them; also known as "arithmetic mean." The mean of 3,5,7, and 9 is 6.
Median. A type of average arrived at by finding the midpoint in a set of numerical values. If A is 6' tall, B is 5'10", and C is 5'3", the median height is 5'10".
Mode. A type of average arrived at by finding the most frequently occurring value or number in a group. If 3 people in a class receive an A, 15 receive a B, and 9 receive a C, the mode is B.
Persuasive definition. A definition intended to influence its audience's sentiments on a subject.
Precising definition. A definition intended to make a vague concept more exact.
Semantical ambiguity. A type of ambiguity caused by the multiple meanings of words.
Stipulative definition. A definition intended to assign a meaning to a (new or existing) word.
Syntactical ambiguity. A type of ambiguity caused by the grammatical structure of a sentence; most often caused by pronouns with unclear referents and by qualifying phrases.
Vague comparison. A type of vagueness produced by a comparative clam whose basis for comparison is unclear, or which in some other way omits essential information.
Vagueness. The failure of a word or claim to possess
any precise meaning.
