TERM

in logic, the subject or predicate of a categorical proposition (q.v.), or statement. Aristotle so used the Greek word horos (limit), apparently by an analogy between the terms of a proportion and those of a syllogism. Terminus is the Latin translation of this word, used, for example, by the 5th-century Roman philosopher Boethius. Hence in medieval logic the word came to be used also for common and proper names generally and even for what were called syncate-gorematic termswords such as and, if, not, some, only, except, which are incapable of being used for the subject or predicate of a proposition. In mathematics, the terms of a fraction are the numerator and denominator. The terms of a proportion are the four numbers or expressions that enter into the proportion. Similarly, the terms of a sum are the numbers that are added together to constitute the sum or the numerical expressions denoting them. In this sense, an infinite series is thought of as a sum of an infinite number of terms; and a polynomial is a sum of a finite number of monomials, which are the terms of the polynomial. When the terms are quite complicated, they can be identified by the plus or minus signs by which they are demarcated. in the visual arts, element consisting of a sculptured figure or bust at the top of a stone pillar or column that usually tapers downward to a quadrangular base. Often the pillar replaces the body of the figure, with feet sometimes indicated at its base. The pillar itself may be a separate object (i.e., a pedestal for the head or other sculpture), in which case it is called a terminal pedestal. The word term (an abbreviation of Terminus, the Roman name for the god of boundaries) has a long list of synonyms, including terminal figure, terminus, terminal, herma, hermes, and herm. In ancient Rome terms were placed along highways and used as boundary markers. The head or bust on a Roman term could be that of a human, an animal, or a mythical creature. The ancestor of the Roman term, the herm, was a sacred representation of the Greek god of travelers, Hermes: a sculptured bust of the god merging into the stone pillar supporting it. The most familiar form of term is that found in many Renaissance gardens, in which a detailed portrait head arises out of a simple, sculptured pillar.