premisa

premise

noun preh-MEE-sah Rare

Origin: from Latin praemissa (thing placed before)

Also means

assumption

Usage Note

Premisa is used in logic, argumentation, and everyday speech to mean a starting assumption or foundational statement. The plural premisas is regular. Learners may recognise the pattern premisa mayor (major premise) and premisa menor (minor premise) from formal logic. The word is a near-transparent cognate with English 'premise', though 'premises' (building) is translated as local or instalaciones, not premisas.

Examples

"La premisa de su argumento era incorrecta."

Natural Translation

The premise of his argument was incorrect.

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