Synonyms for dictum
ˈdɪk təmdic·tum

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. dictum

   The proverb or adage gives homely truth in condensed, practical form, the adage often pictorial. "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick" is a proverb; "The cat loves fish, but dares not wet her feet," is an adage. Both the proverb and the adage, but especially the latter, are thought of as ancient and widely known. An aphorism partakes of the character of a definition; it is a summary statement of what the author sees and believes to be true. An apothegm is a terse statement of what is plain or easily proved. The aphorism is philosophical, the apothegm practical. A dictum is a statement of some person or school, on whom it depends for authority; as, a dictum of Aristotle. A saying is impersonal, current among the common people, deriving its authority from its manifest truth or good sense; as, it is an old saying, "the more haste, the worse speed." A saw is a saying that is old, but somewhat worn and tiresome. Precept is a command to duty; motto or maxim is a brief statement of cherished truth, the maxim being more uniformly and directly practical; "God is love" may be a motto, "Fear God and fear naught," a maxim. The precepts of the Sermon on the Mount will furnish the Christian with invaluable maxims or mottoes. A byword is a phrase or saying used reproachfully or contemptuously.

   Synonyms:
   adage, aphorism, apothegm, axiom, byword, maxim, motto, precept, proverb, saw, saying, truism

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:1.0 / 9 votes

1. pronouncement, dictum, say-sonoun

   an authoritative declaration

   Synonyms:
   potency, obiter dictum, dominance, authority, authorisation, say-so, pronouncement, authorization

2. obiter dictum, dictumnoun

   an opinion voiced by a judge on a point of law not directly bearing on the case in question and therefore not binding

   Synonyms:
   passing comment, pronouncement, obiter dictum, say-so

Matched Categories

1. • Declaration
   • Law
   • Opinion

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. dictumnoun

   Synonyms:
   (L. pl. Dicta.) saying, assertion, affirmation

2. dictumnoun

   Synonyms:
   (Law.) extrajudicial opinion

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "dictum":

   pronouncement, precept

How to pronounce dictum?

How to say dictum in sign language?

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

1. 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Words popularity by usage frequency

How to use dictum in a sentence?

1. Marcus Aurelius:

   [Treat] unenlightened souls with sympathy and indulgence, remembering that they are ignorant or mistaken about what’s most important. Never be harsh, remember Plato’s dictum: ‘Every soul is deprived of the truth against its will.’

2. Nadine Gordimer:

   Art is on the side of the oppressed. Think before you shudder at the simplistic dictum and its heretical definition of the freedom of art. For if art is freedom of the spirit, how can it exist within the oppressors?

3. John Stuart Mill:

   Indeed the dictum that truth always triumphs over persecution, is one of those pleasant falsehoods which men repeat after one another till they pass into common places, but which all experience refutes.