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Definition of pragmatism - 5 dictionary results

prag⋅ma⋅tism

  [prag-muh-tiz-uhm]
Use pragmatism in a Sentence
–noun
1. character or conduct that emphasizes practicality.
2. a philosophical movement or system having various forms, but generally stressing practical consequences as constituting the essential criterion in determining meaning, truth, or value.

Origin:
1860–65; pragmat(ic) + -ism

Related forms:
prag⋅ma⋅tis⋅tic, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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prag·ma·tism   (prāg'mə-tĭz'əm)   
n.  
  1. Philosophy A movement consisting of varying but associated theories, originally developed by Charles S. Peirce and William James and distinguished by the doctrine that the meaning of an idea or a proposition lies in its observable practical consequences.
  2. A practical, matter-of-fact way of approaching or assessing situations or of solving problems.
prag'ma·tist n., prag'ma·tis'tic adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Pragmatism

Prag"ma*tism\, n. The quality or state of being pragmatic; in literature, the pragmatic, or philosophical, method.

The narration of this apparently trifling circumstance belongs to the pragmatism of the history. --A. Murphy.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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pragmatism

An approach to philosophy, primarily held by American philosophers, which holds that the truth or meaning of a statement is to be measured by its practical (i.e., pragmatic) consequences. William James and John Dewey were pragmatists.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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pragmatism prag·ma·tism (prāg'mə-tĭz'əm)
n.
A way of approaching situations or solving problems that emphasizes practical applications and consequences.

prag·mat'ic (-māt'ĭk) adj.
prag'ma·tist n.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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