nontruthapt

Nontruthapt is a term used in philosophy of language and linguistics to describe utterances that lack truth-conditions in the standard sense of truth-conditional semantics. The underlying idea contrasts with truth-apt sentences, which can be true or false depending on how the world is. Nontruthapt expressions do not express propositions that can be evaluated for truth, often because they perform actions or express attitudes rather than report states of affairs.

Etymology and scope. The word is formed from the negative prefix non-, the noun truth, and apt, indicating suitability for assignment of truth-values. The concept is not widely standardized and is typically introduced as a descriptive label in discussions of speech acts, pragmatics, and the philosophy of language. It is often invoked to distinguish imperatives, questions, exclamations, and many performative or expressive utterances from declarative sentences that aim to describe or assert facts.

Examples. Imperatives such as "Close the door" and questions such as "What time is it?" are commonly cited as nontruthapt. Exclamations like "Amazing!" or evaluative interjections such as "Well done" can also be treated as nontruthapt in many analyses. However, context and presuppositions can blur the boundary, since some utterances may carry implicit propositions or conditions that admit truth-conditional readings.

Applications and debates. In linguistic theory and artificial intelligence, distinguishing nontruthapt from truth-apt content helps in modeling dialogue, intention, and meaning. Critics argue that many seemingly nontruthapt utterances embed presuppositions or implicit propositions, complicating a clean separation. The term nontruthapt remains a controversial and occasionally debated label rather than a settled category.

See also. Truth-apt, speech act theory, performatives, pragmatics.