deduction

de·duc·tion

noun \di-ˈdək-shən, dē-\

Definition of DEDUCTION

1

a : an act of taking away <deduction of legitimate business expenses>

b : something that is or may be subtracted <deductions from his taxable income>

2

a : the deriving of a conclusion by reasoning; specifically : inference in which the conclusion about particulars follows necessarily from general or universal premises — compare induction

b : a conclusion reached by logical deduction

Examples of DEDUCTION

1. The government is offering new tax deductions for small businesses.
2. What is your pay after the deductions have been taken out?
3. His guess was based on intuition rather than deduction.
4. Our deduction was based on the information given to us at the time.
5. It was a logical deduction.

First Known Use of DEDUCTION

15th century

Related to DEDUCTION

Synonyms

abatement, discount, reduction

Antonyms

accession, addition

Related Words

giveback, kickback, rebate; dent, depreciation; decline, decrement, diminishment, diminution, drop, fall, loss; forfeit, forfeiture, penalty

Near Antonyms

accretion, accrual, augmentation, boost, gain, increase, increment, raise, rise; appreciation

Other Economics Terms

actuary, compound interest, globalization, indemnity, portfolio, rentier, stagflation, usurer

Rhymes with DEDUCTION

abduction, adduction, conduction, construction, destruction, eduction, effluxion, induction, instruction, obstruction, production, reduction, seduction, subduction, transduction

deduction

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

In logic, a type of inference or argument that purports to be valid, where a valid argument is one whose conclusion must be true if its premises are true (see validity). Deduction is thus distinguished from induction, where there is no such presumption. Valid deductive arguments may have false premises, as demonstrated by the example: “All men are mortal; Cleopatra is a man; therefore, Cleopatra is mortal.” Invalid deductive arguments sometimes embody formal fallacies (i.e., errors of reasoning based on the structure of the propositions in the argument); an example is “affirming the consequent”: “If A then B; B; therefore, A” (see fallacy; formal and informal).