assumption

English

Etymology

From Middle English assumpcioun, from Medieval Latin assumptio (“a taking up (into heaven)”) and Latin assumptio (“a taking up, adoption, the minor proposition of a syllogism”). Doublet of assumptio; see assume.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /əˈsʌm(p).ʃ(ə)n/[1][2][3]
  • Audio (US)(file)

Noun

assumption (countable and uncountable, plural assumptions)

  1. The act of assuming, or taking to or upon oneself; the act of taking up or adopting.
    His assumption of secretarial duties was timely.
  2. The act of taking for granted, or supposing a thing without proof; a supposition; an unwarrantable claim.
    Their assumption of his guilt disqualified them from jury duty.
  3. The thing supposed; a postulate, or proposition assumed; a supposition.
    • 1976, “The Journal of Aesthetic Education, Volume 10”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎:
      No doubt a finite evaluative argument must make some unargued evaluative assumptions, just as finite factual arguments must make some unargued factual assumptions.
  4. (logic) The minor or second proposition in a categorical syllogism.
  5. The taking of a person up into heaven.
  6. A festival in honor of the ascent of the Virgin Mary into heaven, celebrated on 15 August.
  7. (rhetoric) Assumptio.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading
  • assumption in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • assumption in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911

References
  1. The Chambers Dictionary, 9th Ed., 2003
  2. “assumption”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
  3. “assumption”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.