predicatelike

Predicatelike is an informal term used across linguistics, logic, and computer science to describe expressions or entities that perform a role similar to that of a predicate: they ascribe a property or relation to a subject and can yield a truth-value or classification depending on context.

In linguistics, predicatelike elements include predicative adjectives (as in The leaf is green), small clauses, and certain verb phrases that can function as the predicate in a clause. Some adjectives are predicative but not attributive, while others are only attributive, which influences whether they are described as predicatelike in a given framework. Tests for predicatelikeness often involve substitution, movement, or how the element combines with tense and agreement markers.

In logic and philosophy, a predicate is a function from individuals to truth-values. Predicatelike expressions may refer to higher-order or polyadic properties that, when supplied with appropriate arguments, yield a proposition. In programming, a predicatelike object is any boolean-valued function or method used to test a condition, such as a filter predicate in a data-processing pipeline.

Because predicatelike is not a standard technical term with a single formal definition, its precise meaning varies by theoretical tradition; writers may use it to highlight resemblance to predicates without committing to a formal syntax.

See also: Predicate, Predication, Predicative, Predicate logic, Higher-order logic, Lambda calculus.