general semantics

American  

noun

(used with a singular verb)

1. a philosophical approach to language, developed by Alfred Korzybski, exploring the relationship between the form of language and its use and attempting to improve the capacity to express ideas.

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general semantics British  

noun

1. (functioning as singular) a school of thought, founded by Alfred Korzybski, that stresses the arbitrary nature of language and other symbols and the problems that result from misunderstanding their nature

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Etymology

Origin of general semantics

First recorded in 1930–35

Example Sentences

Roger Nierenberg said that much of his father’s thinking about negotiating was rooted in his interest in general semantics, a field within linguistics that views words as labels that distract attention from the things they represent.

From New York Times

O'Reilly coped by seeking out father figures: first George Simon, a practitioner of a New Age philosophy called general semantics, which stresses a kind of introspective observation.

From Inc

To appreciate the damage that this sort of sloppiness can do, it is useful to invoke the late Count Alfred Korzybski, inventor of general semantics.

From Time Magazine Archive

Bourland, who has a master's degree in business administration from Harvard, was also a student at the Institute of General Semantics in Lakeville, Conn., where he became an ardent disciple of the linguistic theories of the leading prophet of general semantics, Alfred Korzybski.

From Time Magazine Archive

A Review of General Semantics, writes books and magazine pieces, and is a devoted jazz fan.

From Time Magazine Archive