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Definition of "propaedeutic" [pro•pæ•deu•tic]

  • Providing introductory instruction. (adjective)
  • Preparatory instruction. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "propaedeutic" in a sentence
  • "Descartes 'famous rules are per - haps best described as propaedeutic, or even as prophylactic, injunctions."
  • "The philosophy of pure reason is either propaedeutic, that is, an inquiry into the powers of reason in regard to pure a priori cognition, and is termed critical philosophy; or it is, secondly, the system of pure reason -- a science containing the systematic presentation of the whole body of philosophical knowledge, true as well as illusory, given by pure reason -- and is called metaphysic."
  • "I suggest not only because it has become a living language, but because it has great propaedeutic values as well."