SIMPLE APPREHENSION,

IDEA, and TERM

Prepared By Roland Lorenzo M. Ruben

Web source: http://ourhappyschool.com/philosophy/term-logic

 INTRODUCTION

Basically, the subject matter in studying logic

is argument.
Argument comprises statements or
propositions and propositions necessarily
contain terms.
Hence, studying logic formally starts with the
study of term.
 CONCEPT, IDEA, WORD, AND TERM

One of our basic mental operations is simple apprehension. Our intellect apprehends or
abstracts the nature or essential qualities (essence) of the things we perceive. The product of this
mental function is called idea. Hence, we have a concept of a dog, for instance, which refers to our
intellectual image or grasp of an animal called dog.

A word is the simplest unit of written or spoken language. It is the fundamental medium of
communication. Without words, sentences and statements cannot be constructed. When employed to
express an idea or group of ideas (concept), a word or group of words (phrases) is called term.

A term is the oral or written representation of an idea or group of ideas (concept). It is also the
basic component of a statement.
 The proposition The former president of the Philippines is a woman, for
instance, contains two terms: the former president of the Philippines and
woman. Woman is a word used to express an idea. This is an example
of a simple term, that is, a single word term. The phrase the former
vice-president of the Philippines is a group of words used to express an
idea or concept. This exemplifies a complex term a term which
is a group of words representing one concept.
 While terms are automatically words, words are not
necessarily terms. In the statement above, is is a word but
is not a term. Many other words have no referents, and hence
are words but not terms, such as or, only, from, through, out, etc.
Word therefore is not synonymous with term for not all
words are terms. And as distinct from concept, word is made
up of letters whereas concept is made up of ideas.
 COMPREHENSION AND EXTENSION OF TERMS

Our mind has the ability and function to abstract the common
qualities or features present in some things perceived by our
senses.
In our observation, for example, we see some animals
exhibiting distinct attributes common to all alike. We cluster
the more noticeable of these characteristics into a concept
for instance, that of a dog. Every time we encounter an animal
displaying such qualities, we term it a dog.
 The set of attributes or traits that members of a term possess is called the
comprehension of a term. Dog, for example, is an animal, a mammal, a
living organism, a sentient being. The comprehension includes not only the
essential qualities but also those deducible from them. Being an animal, a dog, for
instance, can multiply. Being a living organism, someday it will die.

Extension of a term, on the other hand, refers to the totality of individuals

or classes to which the intension is applicable. Dalmatians, canines, etc., and any
literal dog are extension of the simple term dog.
 Many philosophers are now using the words connotation and denotation to signify
comprehension and extension respectively.
The comprehension and extension of terms are inversely related to each other. The
greater the comprehension of a term, the lesser its extension, and vice-versa. A young
dog for instance, stands as a comprehension of the term puppy. If we add Dalmatian to
the comprehension, then the extension is reduced for it does not involve non-
Dalmatian puppies.
Logically therefore, if we lessen the comprehension, the result would be the increase
in the extension.
 KINDS OF TERMS

A. According to quantity/extension: Singular, Particular, Universal,

and Collective Terms
B. According to quality: affirmative and negative
C. According to comprehension (definiteness of meaning):
Univocal, Equivocal and Analogous
D. According to relation: Compatible and Incompatible (Contradictory,
Contrary, Relative, and Privative)
 A. ACCORDING TO
QUANTITY/EXTENSION: SINGULAR, PARTICULAR,
UNIVERSAL, AND COLLECTIVE TERMS
1. A term is singular if it refers to only one individual or thing. The indicators of
singularity are:
a. proper nouns/ proper names, such as Tokyo, Michael Jordan, Air Force One
b. superlatives, such as the best actor, the most corrupt official, the highest scorer
c. demonstrative adjectives/pronouns, such as this book, that room, that teacher, this student
d. personal pronouns, I, he, you, she, her, etc. (as long as they definitely stand for one specific
person)
e. the definite article the/specific modifiers such as, the lady in red
 A. ACCORDING TO
QUANTITY/EXTENSION: SINGULAR, PARTICULAR,
UNIVERSAL, AND COLLECTIVE TERMS
2. A term is particular if it stands for an indefinite part of a whole. In Logic, a term is
considered particular if it represents at least one but not all of the individuals
composing a class. The following indicates particularity:
a. indefinite pronouns/adjectives (some, many, several, few, most, certain) e.g. some singers,
several songs, many questions, few answers
b. indefinite articles a and an used in particular contexts, e.g. a helicopter, an airplane
c. number modifiers, e.g. 7 dwarfs, 2 princesses
d. modifiers such as majority, almost all, generally all, nearly all, e.g. majority of the congressmen,
almost all administrators, generally all believers
e. Subject terms in propositions that are true to only some of the denotations of the term,
e.g. Belgians are religious; Men have sense of chivalry.
 A. ACCORDING TO
QUANTITY/EXTENSION: SINGULAR, PARTICULAR,
UNIVERSAL, AND COLLECTIVE TERMS
3. A term is universal if it refers to all individuals signified by the term. The
following indicates universality:
a. universal affirmative quantifiers such as, all, each, every, any, everything, everyone,
anything, anyone, whatever, whichever, whenever, wherever, whoever, e.g. all countries,
every citizen, each blogger, any amount, anything new, whatever answer
b. universal negative modifiers such as, no, none, no one, nothing, nobody, never, etc.,
e.g. no American, nothing small, nobody wise
c. indefinite articles a and an (when taken to refer to all denotations of the term),
e.g. A man is a rational being.
 A. ACCORDING TO
QUANTITY/EXTENSION: SINGULAR, PARTICULAR,
UNIVERSAL, AND COLLECTIVE TERMS
4. A term is collective if it refers to a group of individuals considered as a single unit.
Collective nouns such as audience, committee, crowd, flock, government, jury, gang,
and orchestra are collective terms. A collective term may be universal, (e.g. squad, all
squads, every squad), particular (e.g., some family, several crowds), or singular (e.g. this
jury).
Collective term is not applicable to the objects taken singly and individually, unless
used figuratively. The term family, as an example, is collective, since it is predicable of
the family members taken collectively, and not individually.
 B. ACCORDING TO QUALITY: AFFIRMATIVE AND
NEGATIVE
1. A term is affirmative or positive if it expresses what is real, true, or essential of a thing,
e.g. existence, life, and optimism. A term is also affirmative when it affirms the presence of desirable
traits, e.g. just, honest, and active.
There are two kinds of affirmative term: a) positive in form, positive in meaning (the above-
mentioned examples fall under this kind); and b) negative in form, positive in meaning,
e.g. blameless, spotless, unblemished, untarnished, infinite, immortal, guiltless

2. A term is negative if it indicates the non-appearance of some trait, e.g. unjust, sickly, inactive, death,
immorality.
There are two kinds of negative term: a) negative in form, negative in meaning, e.g. unjust,
inactive, immoral, impotent; and b) positive in form, negative in meaning, e.g. mistake, death, evil,
oppression, chaos.
C. ACCORDING TO COMPREHENSION:
UNIVOCAL, EQUIVOCAL, AND ANALOGOUS
1. A term is univocal if it exhibits exactly identical sense and
meaning in different incidents. For example, we say Canines are
dogs and Dalmatians are dogs. The term dogs is univocal, unless we
give a different meaning in any of the term dogs in the statements.

Ex. Peter is a man. Paul is a man;

teachers table dining table;
leaves of coconut leaves of mahogany.
 C. ACCORDING TO COMPREHENSION:
UNIVOCAL, EQUIVOCAL, AND ANALOGOUS
2. A term is equivocal when it indicates entirely different meanings in different
occurrences. In the statements, Stars are heavenly bodies and Nicolas Cage and Brad Pitt
are stars, the term stars is equivocal for the meaning of the term stars in the first
statement is different from that of the second. An equivocal term thus is not one but
two terms.
Other examples: pitcher (player) pitcher (water container);
base (camp) base (lower part);
spring of water spring of a machine;
bark of a tree bark of a dog
 C. ACCORDING TO COMPREHENSION:
UNIVOCAL, EQUIVOCAL, AND ANALOGOUS
3. A term is analogous when it shows partly identical and partly distinct
meanings in different occurrences. In the phrases head of a man and head
of a family, the terms head in some sense are similar but nonetheless
different in some aspects.
Other examples: healthy man healthy diet;
leg of man leg of a chair;
foot of a man foot of a mountain
D. ACCORDING TO RELATION:
COMPATIBLE AND INCOMPATIBLE (CONTRADICTORY,
CONTRARY, RELATIVE, AND PRIVATIVE)

1. Compatible terms are terms that can coexist in a subject,

that is, there is no logical obstacle for them to be present in a
subject at the same time.
e.g. tall and handsome,
dark and rich,
slowly and surely,
simple and elegant,
sweet and sour
 D. ACCORDING TO RELATION:
COMPATIBLE AND INCOMPATIBLE (CONTRADICTORY,
CONTRARY, RELATIVE, AND PRIVATIVE)
2. Incompatible terms are terms that cannot coexist in a subject for they rule
out each other. The following are kinds of incompatible terms:
a) Contradictory terms are two terms, one of which negates the other. Contradictories are so
mutually exclusive that there is no middle ground or third possibility between them.
e.g. edible non-edible; being nothing; existent non-existent; life lifeless
b) Contrary terms are terms that belong to the same class but deny each other. Between these
terms, there is/are middle ground/s. When some said that her girlfriend is not black, it is not safe to
conclude that he must be white, for he may be brown or yellow. White and black therefore are
contrary (not contradictory) terms.
Other examples: elateddepressed, hardeasy, hot cold, happy sad, long short, geniusidiot.
 D. ACCORDING TO RELATION:
COMPATIBLE AND INCOMPATIBLE (CONTRADICTORY,
CONTRARY, RELATIVE, AND PRIVATIVE)
c) Privative terms are terms wherein one indicates the presence of a quality or
perfection while the other signifies the absence or lack of it.
e.g. good evil, truthfalsity, health sickness, wealth poverty, sight blindness
d) Correlative terms are two opposed terms wherein one cannot be
understood without the other. In their meaning, they imply reference to one
another.
e.g. husband wife, interviewer interviewee, parent child, master servant, teacher
pupil, leader follower
 IN NOT MORE THAN TWO (2)
SENTENCES, EXPLAIN WHY THIS TOPIC
("THE TERM IN LOGIC") IS IMPORTANT.