a priori (redirected from À priori)

a priori

In epistemology, knowledge that is independent of all particular experiences, as opposed to a posteriori (or empirical) knowledge, which derives from experience. The terms have their origins in the medieval Scholastic debate over Aristotelian concepts (see Scholasticism). Immanuel Kant initiated their current usage, pairing the analytic-synthetic distinction with the a priori–a posteriori distinction to define his theory of knowledge.

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a priori

1. Logic relating to or involving deductive reasoning from a general principle to the expected facts or effects

2. Logic known to be true independently of or in advance of experience of the subject matter; requiring no evidence for its validation or support

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a priori [¦ā prē¦ȯr·ē]

(mathematics)

Pertaining to deductive reasoning from assumed axioms or supposedly self-evident principles, supposedly without reference to experience.