postulate

verb pos·tu·late \ ˈpäs-chə-ˌlāt \

Definition of postulate

postulated; postulating

transitive verb

1 :demand, claim

2 a :to assume or claim as true, existent, or necessary :depend upon or start from the postulate of

b :to assume as a postulate or axiom (as in logic or mathematics)

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postulation

play \ˌpäs-chə-ˈlā-shən\ noun

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postulational

play \-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl\ adjective

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postulate was our Word of the Day on 03/06/2017. Hear the podcast!

Examples of postulate in a Sentence

Scientists have postulated the existence of water on the planet.
postulates that all people are born with certain rights that can never be taken away from them

Recent Examples of postulate from the Web

One 2000 National Bureau of Economic Research study postulates that internet age innovations simply haven't been as game-changing for the U.S. economy as say the introduction of electricity or air transportation in the past two centuries.

— lucinda shen, Fortune, "Donald Trump Says U.S. Never Hit 3% GDP Growth Under Obama — But It’s Misleading," 30 Aug. 2017
My friend and colleague Mike Sielski wrote a column that postulated the rookie voting was perhaps part of an agenda bent on punishing the Sixers for their nasty Process.

— bob ford, Philly.com, "Philly paranoia will destroy ya | Bob Ford," 30 June 2017
Star-Telegram columnist Gil Lebreton postulates that the reason LSU is barring Allen from transferring to TCU is related to another recruit.

— creg stephenson, AL.com, "LSU blocked offensive lineman from transferring to TCU, report says," 16 June 2017
As early as 300 B.C., Epicurus postulated that there must be many worlds like ours among the stars.

— matt mountain, The Atlantic, "The Tiny Edit That Changed NASA's Future," 13 June 2017
Mr. Green has long postulated that the future of transportation will be less focused on private car ownership.

— mike isaac, New York Times, "Playing Catch-Up to Uber on Self-Driving, Lyft Teams Up With Partners," 6 June 2017
The idea that senescent cells contribute to aging was first postulated in the 1960s.

— elmo keep, Smithsonian, "Can Human Mortality Really Be Hacked?," 24 May 2017
Researchers postulate that given the way the octopus is letting the tentacles drag behind it, the animal may be wielding the stinging cells for defense or to catch more prey.

— National Geographic, "Watch as Octopus Eats Jellyfish, Then Clings to It as Likely Weapon," 5 Apr. 2017
Neuroscientists and memory experts have postulated that there could be ways to erase specific memories.

— ilona szwarc, National Geographic, "Artist's Memory Loss Fuels Discoveries About the Brain," 22 Mar. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'postulate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

In 1703, the dedication of the City and County Purchaser and Builders Dictionary included the following words: "These your extraordinary Favours … seem to Postulate from me … a Publick Recognition." That's also how the verb "postulate" was used when English speakers first began using it back in the late 1500s, as a synonym of "require" or "demand." (The word's Latin grandparent, postulare, has the same meaning.) "Postulate" was also used as a noun in the late 1500s, with the meaning "demand" or "stipulation." That sense is now considered archaic, but we still use the noun "postulate." Today, it usually means "a hypothesis advanced as an essential presupposition, condition, or premise of a train of reasoning."

Origin and Etymology of postulate

Latin postulatus, past participle of postulare; akin to Latin poscere to ask, Old High German forscōn to search, Sanskrit pṛcchati he asks — more at pray

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1605

See Words from the same year

postulate Synonyms

Synonyms

hypothecate, hypothesize, assume, premise, presume, presuppose, say, suppose

Related Words

accept, believe, credit, swallow; conclude, deduce, gather, infer, judge, take; conjecture, figure, guess, reckon [chiefly dialect], surmise, suspect, suspicion [chiefly dialect], think; conceive, dream, fancy, imagine, perceive, preconceive; speculate, theorize; affirm, allege, assert, aver, avouch, avow, claim, contend, declare, insist, maintain, profess

Near Antonyms

challenge, controvert, disagree (with), disbelieve, discount, discredit, dispute, distrust, doubt, mistrust, question, wonder (about); deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, reject, repudiate; belie, confute, disprove, rebut, refute

Other Logic Terms

a posteriori, connotation, corollary, inference, mutually exclusive, paradox, postulate, syllogism

postulate

noun pos·tu·late \ ˈpäs-chə-lət , -ˌlāt \

Definition of postulate

1 :a hypothesis advanced as an essential presupposition, condition, or premise of a train of reasoning

2 :axiom 2

See postulate defined for English-language learners

Examples of postulate in a Sentence

Einstein's theory of relativity was deduced from two postulates.
one of the postulates that the true agnostic rejects is the assumption that it is even possible for us to know whether God exists