Thetic

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or established by means of a thesis or proposition that is laid down as a starting point
2. Based on or proceeding from a stated assumption or thesis rather than from observation or proof
3. Concerning ideas or arguments that are posited or assumed as a foundation for reasoning

Etymology: "Thetic" is a technical term in philosophy and grammar, formed from the Greek "thetikos", meaning "placing" or "positing", from "tithenai", "to put, place". The Greek verb is the source of many scientific and philosophical words in English, and "thetic" follows the pattern of "antithetic" and "synthetic", with the "-etic" ending being the adjectival suffix "-ic" attached to the stem "thet-". In English, "thetic" appears mainly in philosophy, where it describes a statement or judgment that asserts something as existing or true, as opposed to one that merely presents an idea. The term was taken up in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries from German and Greek-based philosophical vocabulary, and its use is largely confined to specialist writing. Its opposite in this sense, "categorical" or "thetic versus categorical" in Franz Brentano's judgment theory, shows how the Greek root was adapted for modern analytic discussion.

Synonyms: posited, postulated