rationality

American  

[rash-uh-nal-i-tee] / ˌræʃ əˈnæl ɪ ti /

noun

plural

rationalities

1. the state or quality of being rational.

2. the possession of reason.

3. agreeableness to reason; reasonableness.

4. the exercise of reason.

5. a reasonable view, practice, etc.

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Other Word Forms

• antirationality noun
• nonrationality noun

Etymology

Origin of rationality

First recorded in 1560–70, rationality is from the Late Latin word ratiōnālitās reasonableness. See rational, -ity

Example Sentences

It’s the second factor that often keeps takeover bids alive long after the proposed deals lose their economic rationality.

From Los Angeles Times

There’s some discussion of how mere rationality gets you only so far.

From The Wall Street Journal

This work challenges long-held assumptions that rationality, defined as forming and updating beliefs based on evidence, belongs only to humans.

From Science Daily

“Schoolteachers who bash into our heads that evolution has no rationality often completely ignore the fact that, in the long run, nature’s creations are indistinguishable from rational designs,” the neuroscientist observes.

From The Wall Street Journal

Tylor and Robertson Smith agreed, however, that what Tylor called the “essential rationality of primitive peoples” linked the savage past and the civilized present.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• coherence
• good sense
• sanity