logic

noun · verb

Simple meaning

The study of reasoning, or a system of thinking correctly

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

lahjik

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IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈlɑdʒɪk

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

uncountable
A method of human thought that involves thinking in a linear, step-by-step manner about how a problem can be solved. Logic is the basis of many principles including the scientific method.
uncountablemathematics
The mathematical study of relationships between rigorously defined concepts and of mathematical proof of statements.
countable
Any system of thought, whether rigorous and productive or not, especially one associated with a particular person.
A system of reasoning
philosophylogic
The study of the principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration.
uncountable
The part of a system (usually electronic) that performs the boolean logic operations, short for logic gates or logic circuit.

verb

transitive
To apply logical reasoning to.
transitive
To overcome by logical argument.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: A2 · Elementary (estimated)
Frequency: Common
Typical Use: Varies by meaning

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A method of human thought that involves thinking in a linear, step-by-step manner about how a problem can be solved. Logic is the basis of many principles including the scientific method.

Used this way, logic is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in science contexts.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Specialist/technical
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Specialized
Connotation: Clinical and technical
Usage feel: Technical and specialized

Where it naturally appears

Science

Usage note

In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use logic

“It's hard to work out his system of logic.”noun
“Fred is designing the logic for the new controller.”noun

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Electronic

logic gates

Principles

order logic

Formal

formal logic

Other combinations

logic programmingsymbolic logic

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

logicaladjectiveDerived adjective
Capable of or reflecting the capability for correct and valid reasoning.
logicallyadverbDerived adverb
According to logical reasoning.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

logic gatenounCompound term
A computer circuit with several inputs but only one output that can be activated by particular combinations of inputs.
logic operationnounCompound term
An operation that follows the rules of symbolic logic.
logic programingnounCompound term
A computer language designed in Europe to support natural language processing.
logic programmingnounCompound term
A computer language designed in Europe to support natural language processing.
logic bombnounCompound term
A set of instructions inserted into a program that are designed to execute (or `explode') if a particular condition is satisfied.
logic diagramnounCompound term
A graphical representation of a program using formal logic.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

logical diagramnounRelated term
A graphical representation of a program using formal logic.
logical operationnounRelated term
An operation that follows the rules of symbolic logic.
logical quantifiernounRelated term
A word (such as `some' or `all' or `no') that binds the variables in a logical proposition.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.