set theory
Americannoun
noun
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maths the branch of mathematics concerned with the properties and interrelationships of sets
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logic a theory constructed within first-order logic that yields the mathematical theory of classes, esp one that distinguishes sets from proper classes as a means of avoiding certain paradoxes
Etymology
Origin of set theory
First recorded in 1940–45
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the late 1800s, German logician Georg Cantor, founder of modern set theory, discovered that not all infinite sets are equal.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 16, 2021
It is thus impossible to solve CH using the usual axioms of set theory.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 16, 2021
Dehn’s concepts of harmonic intervals, topology and set theory entered her work; Ms. Rockburne started thinking of artworks as “visual equations.”
From New York Times ● Aug. 8, 2018
Initially, Ms. Rockburne was inspired by set theory, a branch of mathematical logic.
From New York Times ● May 4, 2018
It would be little comfort to Cantor that his work was the foundation of a whole new branch of mathematics: set theory.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
