premise

(prĕm'ĭs)
n. also prem·iss (prĕm'ĭs)

1. A proposition upon which an argument is based or from which a conclusion is drawn.
2. Logic.
   1. One of the propositions in a deductive argument.
   2. Either the major or the minor proposition of a syllogism, from which the conclusion is drawn.
3. premises Law. The preliminary or explanatory statements or facts of a document, as in a deed.
4. premises
   1. Land and the buildings on it.
   2. A building or part of a building.

v., -ised, -is·ing, -is·es.

v.tr.

1. To state in advance as an introduction or explanation.
2. To state or assume as a proposition in an argument.

v.intr.
To make a premise.

[Middle English premisse, from Old French, from Medieval Latin praemissa (propositiō), (the proposition) put before, premise, from Latin, feminine past participle of praemittere, to set in front : prae-, pre- + mittere, to send.]

WORD HISTORY   Why do we call a single building the premises? To answer this question, we must go back to the Middle Ages. But first, let it be noted that premises comes from the past participle praemissa, which is both a feminine singular and a neuter plural form of the Latin verb praemittere, "to send in advance, utter by way of preface, place in front, prefix." In Medieval Latin the feminine form praemissa was used as a term in logic, for which we still use the term premise descended from the Medieval Latin word (first recorded in a work composed before 1380). Medieval Latin praemissa in the plural meant "things mentioned before" and was used in legal documents, almost always in the plural, a use that was followed in Old French and Middle English, both of which borrowed the word from Latin. A more specific legal sense in Middle English, "that property, collectively, which is specified in the beginning of a legal document and which is conveyed, as by grant," was also always in the plural in Middle English and later Modern English. And so it remained when this sense was extended to mean "a house or building with its grounds or appurtenances," a usage first recorded before 1730.

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A premiss (usually pronounced prem-is) or (rarely) premise is a previous statement from which another is inferred; the plural is premisses or premises. In the plural, premises also means 'a house or building with its grounds'. As a verb, premise (pronounced like the noun or to rhyme with surmise) means either 'to say or write by way of introduction' or 'to assume from a premiss'.

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noun

Something taken to be true without proof: assumption, postulate, postulation, presupposition, supposition, theory, thesis. See reason/unreason.

verb

To take for granted without proof: assume, posit, postulate, presume, presuppose, suppose. Informal reckon. See belief/unbelief.

n

Definition: hypothesis, argument
Antonyms: fact, reality, truth

v

Definition: hypothesize
Antonyms: be factual

(or premiss) A premise of an argument is one of the propositions from which together the conclusion is derived. A suppressed premise is one that is in fact necessary for the conclusion to follow, but is not explicitly stated.

In logic, the propositions upon which a conclusion is based.

A building or part of a building, including land and other appurtenances, especially mechanical services.

• veterinary p. — does not define whether the accommodation is classified as a hospital, or a clinic, or is less than those and does not fit any special criteria. Does indicate that the premises are used for veterinary purposes, e.g. branch premises indicates that the premises are used for veterinary work but is serviced from a main clinic at a distance and is not manned for sufficiently long periods each day to qualify as a branch practice.

For a list of words related to premise, see:

• Logic - premise: general statement used as basis for argument and to support conclusion
• Reason and Rationale - premise: something assumed as basis for argument or position
• Order, Hierarchy, and Systems - premise: proposition previously proved or assumed; basis for argument

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See words rhyming with "premise."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Premise.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - forudsætning
v. tr. - forudskikke, forudsætte
v. intr. - gøre noget til en forudsætning

idioms:

• on the premises    på stedet

Nederlands (Dutch)
vooronderstelling, voorgenoemde zaken, terrein met gebouw(en), postuleren

Français (French)
n. - prémisse, locaux (npl), lieux (npl)
v. tr. - poser en prémisse, poser en principe
v. intr. - poser en prémisse, citer en guise d'introduction

idioms:

• on the premises    dans les locaux, sur place

Deutsch (German)
n. - Gebäude, Gelände, Prämisse
v. - voraussetzen, einleitend sagen od. schreiben

idioms:

• on the premises    an Ort und Stelle

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - προϋπόθεση, βάση συλλογισμού, πρόταση συλλογισμού, προκειμένη, (νομ.) εισαγωγικό μέρος συμφωνητικού κ.λπ., (πληθ.) κατάστημα, κτήριο
v. - προτάσσω, ορίζω ως αρχή, βάση ή προϋπόθεση

idioms:

• on the premises    επί τόπου, στο κατάστημα

Italiano (Italian)
immobile, premessa, stabile

idioms:

• on the premises    nello stabile

Português (Portuguese)
n. - premissa (f), local (m)
v. - estabelecer premissas

idioms:

• on the premises    nas instalações, no local

Русский (Russian)
предпосылка, помещение

idioms:

• on the premises    в помещении

Español (Spanish)
n. - premisa, local
v. tr. - sentar, establecer como premisas, suponer preexistente, exponer como una introducción
v. intr. - sentar, establecer como premisas

idioms:

• on the premises    en el local, en el sitio

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - antagande, premiss, fastighet, lokal, inledning (jur.)
v. - nämna först, inleda

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
前提, 房屋连地基, 提论, 假定, 预述, 作出前提

idioms:

• on the premises    在房屋内, 在场所内

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 前提, 房屋連地基
v. tr. - 提論, 假定, 預述
v. intr. - 作出前提

idioms:

• on the premises    在房屋內, 在場所內

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 전제
v. tr. - 허두를 놓다
v. intr. - 전제로 말하다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 前提, 根拠, 家屋敷, 構内, 既述事項
v. - 前提として述べる

idioms:

• on the premises    前提として

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) مقدمه, قياس, , عقار (فعل) يفترض مقدمه منطقيه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮הנחת יסוד, משרדים, שטח, חצר, הנחה, חצרים, בניינים, חלקו הראשון של הסכם‬
v. tr. - ‮הניח הנחה, הציג בפני, ביסס על‬
v. intr. - ‮הניח או השמיע הנחה‬

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