tautology

tautology Definition

tau·tol·ogy (tô täl′ə jē)

noun pl. -·gies

1. needless repetition of an idea in a different word, phrase, or sentence; redundancy; pleonasm (Ex.: “necessary essentials”)
2. an instance of such repetition
Logic a proposition that is analytic (sense )

Etymology: LL tautologia < Gr: see tauto- & -logy

tautology Synonyms

redundancy, pleonasm, reiteration; see repetition.

tautology Usage Examples

Converse of object

avoid: Avoid tautology which is the needless repetition of the same idea.
become: The linguistically challenged misunderstood this and the phrase became the tautology it now is ( A href="http

Adjective modifier

useful: And vitally, we're not stuck in having to talk about ' useful tautologies ' .
mere: The proofs of the existence of God are... mere hollow tautologies.
empty: But when difference is relational, it is also an empty tautology.

Modifies a noun

implicatures: Davis argues that the specific tautology implicatures which actually arise in English are not ones that audiences could work out.

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