deduction

[ dih-duhk-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act or process of deducting; subtraction.
2. something that is or may be deducted:

   She took deductions for a home office and other business expenses from her taxes.

3. the act or process of deducing.
4. something that is deduced:

   His astute deduction was worthy of Sherlock Holmes.

5. Logic.
   1. a process of reasoning in which a conclusion follows necessarily from the premises presented, so that the conclusion cannot be false if the premises are true.
   2. a conclusion reached by this process. Compare induction ( def 4 ).

deduction

/ dɪˈdʌkʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of deducting or subtracting
2. something, esp a sum of money, that is or may be deducted
3. 1. the process of reasoning typical of mathematics and logic, whose conclusions follow necessarily from their premises
   2. an argument of this type
   3. the conclusion of such an argument
4. logic
   1. a systematic method of deriving conclusions that cannot be false when the premises are true, esp one amenable to formalization and study by the science of logic
   2. an argument of this type Compare induction

deduction

/ dĭ-dŭk′shən /

1. The process of reasoning from the general to the specific, in which a conclusion follows necessarily from the premises.
2. A conclusion reached by this process.

deduction

¹

1. A cost or expense subtracted from revenue , usually for tax purposes.

deduction

²

1. A process of reasoning that moves from the general to the specific. ( Compare induction .)

Other Words From

• nonde·duction noun
• prede·duction noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of deduction¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English deduccioun, from Anglo-French, from Latin dēductiōn-, stem of dēductiō “a leading away”; deduct, -ion

Usage

The logical processes known as deduction and induction work in opposite ways. In deduction general principles are applied to specific instances. Thus, using a mathematical formula to figure the volume of air that can be contained in a gymnasium is applying deduction. Similarly, applying a law of physics to predict the outcome of an experiment is reasoning by deduction. By contrast, induction makes generalizations based on a number of specific instances. The observation of hundreds of examples in which a certain chemical kills plants might prompt the inductive conclusion that the chemical is toxic to all plants. Inductive generalizations are often revised as more examples are studied and more facts are known. If certain plants that have not been tested turn out to be unaffected by the chemical, the conclusion about the chemical's toxicity must be revised or restricted. In this way, an inductive generalization is much like a hypothesis.

Example Sentences

After the point deduction, Taylor continued with her punches but so did Serrano.

From BBC

DAFs allow donors to contribute assets, receive an immediate tax deduction and recommend grants to their favorite nonprofits over time.

From Salon

Churches don’t have to disclose their donors to the IRS, so donors could seek to influence elections while remaining anonymous — and get a tax deduction for their contributions.

From Los Angeles Times

She wants to give down payment assistance to homebuyers and tax deductions to new businesses, but the impacts of these may be limited, experts said.

From Salon

A points deduction in March, following a profit and sustainability breach, came before a controversial social media post about VAR Stuart Attwell a month later which ultimately saw the club fined £750,000 this season.

From BBC

Related Words

• abatement
• allowance
• credit
• discount
• rebate
• reduction
• tax write-off
• write-off