sorites
/səˈraɪtiz/
noun
- A logical argument made up of a series of statements that lead to a conclusion, where each statement's predicate becomes the subject of the next.
- Her essay used a sorites to argue that small tax cuts eventually lead to a major budget deficit.
- In class, we studied a sorites that started with 'All men are mortal' and ended with 'Therefore, Socrates is mortal.'
- The philosopher presented a sorites to show how removing one grain of sand from a heap still leaves a heap.
- A paradox or puzzle about vague terms, such as how many grains of sand make a heap, often called the sorites paradox.
- Many students find the sorites confusing because it challenges how we define words like 'bald' or 'tall.'
- The sorites paradox asks at what point a pile of sand stops being a pile if you remove one grain at a time.
- The sorites shows that our everyday language can be imprecise when we try to draw sharp boundaries.