dictum
dictum Lexical Profile
dictum Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A formal, authoritative pronouncement or assertion issued by a person of influence or expertise.
"The architectural committee strictly followed the modernist dictum that form must always follow function."
A short, pithy statement or widely accepted saying that expresses a general truth or principle.
"She lived her professional life by the old dictum that honesty is the best policy."
In law, an incidental expression of opinion by a judge in a courtroom opinion that is not essential to the decision and therefore not legally binding as a precedent.
"The defense attorney argued that the appellate court's remark on contract liability was mere dictum rather than binding law."
Word Nuance & Usage
The plural of 'dictum' can be either the Latinate 'dicta' (preferred in formal and legal contexts) or the Anglicized 'dictums'. In law, it is frequently used as shorthand for 'obiter dictum', referring to a judge's passing remark that does not establish binding precedent.
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 16th century directly from Latin 'dictum', meaning 'something said' or 'a saying', the neuter past participle of 'dicere' ('to say' or 'to speak').