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tenet

 - 3 dictionary results

ten⋅et

  [ten-it; Brit. also tee-nit]
Use tenet in a Sentence
–noun
any opinion, principle, doctrine, dogma, etc., esp. one held as true by members of a profession, group, or movement.
Origin:
1590–1600; < L: he holds

Synonyms:
belief, position.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ten·et   (těn'ĭt)   
n.  An opinion, doctrine, or principle held as being true by a person or especially by an organization. See Synonyms at doctrine.

[Probably from Medieval Latin, from Latin, third person sing. present indicative of tenēre, to hold; see ten- in Indo-European roots.]
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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Word Origin & History

tenet 
"principle," properly "a thing held (to be true)," 1413, from L. tenet "he holds," third person singular present indicative of tenere "to hold, to keep, to maintain" from PIE base *ten- "to stretch" (cf. Skt. tantram "loom," tanoti "stretches, lasts;" Pers. tar "string;" Lith. tankus "compact," i.e. "tightened;" Gk. teinein "to stretch," tasis "a stretching, tension," tenos "sinew," tetanos "stiff, rigid," tonos "string," hence "sound, pitch;" L. tendere "to stretch," tenuis "thin, rare, fine;" O.C.S. tento "cord;" O.E. thynne "thin"). Connection notion between "stretch" and "hold" is "to cause to maintain." The modern sense is probably because tenet was used in M.L. to introduce a statement of doctrine.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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