categorical

adjective

cat·e·gor·i·cal ˌka-tə-ˈgȯr-i-kəl

-ˈgär-

variants or less commonly categoric

ˌka-tə-ˈgȯr-ik

-ˈgär-

Synonyms of categorical

: absolute, unqualified

a categorical denial

: of, relating to, or constituting a category

: involving, according with, or considered with respect to specific categories

a categorical system for classifying books

categorically

ˌka-tə-ˈgȯr-i-k(ə-)lē

-ˈgär-

adverb

Did you know?

The ancestor of categorical and category has been important in logic and philosophy since the days of Aristotle. Both English words come from the Greek word katēgoria, which Aristotle used to name the ten fundamental classes (also called "predications" or "assertions") of terms, things, or ideas into which he felt human knowledge could be organized. Ironically, although those categories and things categorical are supposed to be absolute and fundamental, philosophers have long argued about the number and type of categories that exist and the role they play in our understanding of the world. High-level philosophical disputes aside, the word categorical continues to sometimes describe an absolute assertion, one that involves no conditions or hypotheses—for example, the statement "~~hot dogs are sandwiches~~ all humans are mortal."

Examples of categorical in a Sentence

He issued a categorical denial about his involvement in the deal. a categorical denial of the rumors that the celebrities were planning to get married

Recent Examples on the Web

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No ‘categorical right’ The Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that the PBA stretched Marsy’s Law too far. —Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2025 This is a logical fallacy—specifically, a misinterpretation of categorical logic. —Lance Eliot, Forbes, 6 Mar. 2025 That decision bore rotten fruit when the Oscars similarly used Gascon to break its own categorical norms. —Armond White, National Review, 5 Mar. 2025 The first executive order calls for considering new categorical exclusions under the National Environmental Policy Act, potentially allowing more logging projects to bypass thorough environmental reviews. —Angrej Singh, Axios, 3 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for categorical