Link Centre Dictionary

dialectic

dia·lec·tic

UK/ˌdaɪəˈlɛktɪk/ US/ˌdaɪʌˈlɛktɪk/ fairly common
noun (2) adjective (1)

noun

1.

any formal system of reasoning that arrives at the truth by the exchange of logical arguments

2.

a contradiction of ideas that serves as the determining factor in their interaction

  • “this situation created the inner dialectic of American history”

adjective

1.

of or relating to or employing dialectic

  • “the dialectical method”
Synonyms

Origin

From Old French dialectique, from Late Latin dialectica, from Ancient Greek διαλεκτική (dialektikḗ, “the art of argument through interactive questioning and answering”), from διαλεκτικός (dialektikós, “relating to dialogue”), from διαλέγομαι (dialégomai, “to participate in a dialogue”), from διά (diá, “through, across”) + λέγειν (légein, “to speak”).

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.