I. ˈparəˌdīm, -ˌdim also ˈper- sometimes -ˌdēm or -_də̇m noun
( plural paradigms -mz ; also paradig·ma·ta -digməd.ə, -mətə)
Etymology: Late Latin paradigma, from Greek paradeigma, pattern, model, example, from paradeiknynai to show side by side, compare, exhibit, from para- para- (I) + deiknynai to show — more at diction
1. : example , pattern
mistaken the paradigm for the theory — Margaret Mead
a typical conditioned-response paradigm — W.N.Kellogg
regard science as the paradigm of true knowledge — G.C.J.Midgley
paradigms of musical perfection — H.G.Aiken
2.
a. : an example of a conjugation or declension showing a word in all its inflectional forms
b. : a set of forms peculiar to a verb, noun, pronoun, or adjective
3. : a narrative passage in the Gospels that illustrates a saying of Jesus and represents one of the literary patterns distinguished by form criticism
the paradigm … is represented in its purity by the healing of the paralytic — Times Literary Supplement
Synonyms: see model
II. noun
: a philosophical and theoretical framework of a scientific school or discipline within which theories, laws, and generalizations and the experiments performed in support of them are formulated