Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To assume or put forward, as for consideration or the basis of argument.
  • transitive verb To place firmly in position.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To dispose, range, or place in relation to other objects.
  • To lay down as a position or principle; assume as real or conceded; present as a fact; affirm.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To dispose or set firmly or fixedly; to place or dispose in relation to other objects.
  • transitive verb (Logic) To assume as real or conceded.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Something that is posited; a postulate.
  • noun aviation Abbreviation of position.
  • verb Assume the existence of; to postulate.
  • verb Propose for consideration or study; to suggest.
  • verb Put (something somewhere) firmly.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb take as a given; assume as a postulate or axiom
  • noun (logic) a proposition that is accepted as true in order to provide a basis for logical reasoning
  • verb put (something somewhere) firmly
  • verb put before

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From Latin positus, past participle of pōnere, to place; see position.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin positus, perfect participle of pōnō ("put, place").

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Examples

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  • The osteopathic philosophy posits that there is a unity between a living organism's anatomy and physiology.

    May 26, 2010