secondary quality


nounEpistemology.
  1. one of the qualities attributed by the mind to an object perceived, such as color, temperature, or taste.

Origin of secondary quality

1
First recorded in 1690–1700

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use secondary quality in a sentence

  • "Likeness is quite a secondary quality," said Aurelle condescendingly.

    General Bramble | Andr Maurois
  • It is in fact almost entirely in this secondary quality that their interest lies; their ostensible subject-matter is unimportant.

    Books and Characters | Lytton Strachey