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Truthbearing

Truthbearing is a term used in philosophy to denote entities that can bear truth values, that is, be true or false. A truthbearer is something to which truth can be ascribed; common candidates include sentences, propositions, utterances, beliefs, thoughts, and data or reports. The central idea is that truth is a relation between a truthbearer and a truth value, often grounded in a further theory of what makes that truth value correct.

Different accounts treat truthbearers in varying ways. Linguistic items such as sentences and utterances are frequently

Theories of truth associated with truthbearers typically address how truth relates to reality or to coherence

Historically, discussions of truthbearers appear in debates on truth-conditions, truth-conditional semantics, and the philosophy of language,

considered
truthbearers
because
they
express
claims
that
can
be
true
or
false
in
a
given
context.
Propositions,
as
abstract
contents,
are
another
widespread
candidate,
especially
in
discussions
of
truth-conditions
and
semantics.
Beliefs
and
thoughts
can
also
serve
as
truthbearers
in
epistemology
and
philosophy
of
mind.
with
a
system
of
other
beliefs.
The
main
options
include
the
correspondence
theory
(truth
as
alignment
with
facts
or
states
of
affairs),
the
coherence
theory
(truth
as
coherence
within
a
set
of
beliefs),
and
the
pragmatic
theory
(truth
as
practical
success
or
utility).
Some
discussions
introduce
truthmakers,
the
entities
that
ground
or
guarantee
the
truth
of
a
truthbearer.
with
contributions
from
Frege,
Tarski,
Davidson,
and
others.
Today,
the
concept
remains
central
in
logic,
linguistics,
knowledge
representation,
and
artificial
intelligence,
where
statements,
data
records,
and
beliefs
function
as
truthbearers
within
formal
and
informal
systems.