Logical form

Logical form is the abstract structure of a statement or argument, represented independently of its particular subject matter. It determines which substitutions preserve its inferential pattern.

Proposition: A proposition is a declarative content that can be true or false. Logical forms represent propositions while abstracting from what makes them true.
Formal language: A formal language is a system of symbols and rules for constructing well-formed expressions. Its syntax makes logical structure explicit and precisely manipulable.
Argument: An argument is a set of premises offered as support for a conclusion. Its form reveals whether the premises support the conclusion independently of topic.
Formal logic: Formal logic studies inference through explicit symbolic languages and rules. Logical form is a central object formal logic represents and evaluates.
Logical connective: A logical connective combines or modifies propositions, as negation, conjunction, and implication do. Connectives encode recurring ways propositions combine in logical form.
Logical syntax: Logical syntax specifies how symbols may be combined into valid expressions. Syntax determines which arrangements count as candidate logical forms.
Validity: An argument is valid when its conclusion must be true if all its premises are true. Validity depends on form rather than the actual truth of particular premises.
Material inference: Material inference is reasoning whose validity depends partly on the meanings or subject matter of its terms. It contrasts with accounts that explain validity solely through abstract form.
Predicate logic: Predicate logic analyzes relations and quantified properties using variables, predicates, and quantifiers. It expresses logical forms that propositional logic cannot capture, such as quantified relations.
Logical semantics: Logical semantics assigns meanings or truth conditions to expressions in a formal language. Semantics clarifies how a form behaves across interpretations.

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