From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Predicate \Pred"i*cate\, v. i.
To affirm something of another thing; to make an affirmation.
--Sir M. Hale.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Predicate \Pred"i*cate\, n. [L. praedicatum, neut. of
praedicatus, p. p. praedicare: cf. F. pr['e]dicat. See
Predicate, v. t.]
1. (Logic) That which is affirmed or denied of the subject.
In these propositions, "Paper is white," "Ink is not
white," whiteness is the predicate affirmed of paper and
denied of ink.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Gram.) The word or words in a proposition which express
what is affirmed of the subject.
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Syn: Affirmation; declaration.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Predicate \Pred"i*cate\, a. [L. praedicatus, p. p.]
Predicated.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Predicate \Pred"i*cate\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Predicated; p.
pr. & vb. n. Predicating.] [L. praedicatus, p. p. of
praedicare to cry in public, to proclaim. See Preach.]
1. To assert to belong to something; to affirm (one thing of
another); as, to predicate whiteness of snow.
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2. To found; to base. [U.S.]
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Note: Predicate is sometimes used in the United States for
found or base; as, to predicate an argument on certain
principles; to predicate a statement on information
received. Predicate is a term in logic, and used only
in a single case, namely, when we affirm one thing of
another. "Similitude is not predicated of essences or
substances, but of figures and qualities only."
--Cudworth.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
predicate
n 1: (logic) what is predicated of the subject of a proposition;
the second term in a proposition is predicated of the first
term by means of the copula; "`Socrates is a man'
predicates manhood of Socrates"
2: one of the two main constituents of a sentence; the predicate
contains the verb and its complements [syn: predicate,
verb phrase]
v 1: make the (grammatical) predicate in a proposition; "The
predicate `dog' is predicated of the subject `Fido' in the
sentence `Fido is a dog'"
2: affirm or declare as an attribute or quality of; "The speech
predicated the fitness of the candidate to be President"
[syn: predicate, proclaim]
3: involve as a necessary condition of consequence; as in logic;
"solving the problem is predicated on understanding it well"
[syn: connote, predicate]