An aphorism is a short witty sentence which expresses a general truth or comment.
[formal]
'What if they gave a war and nobody came?' was one of his generation's favored aphorisms.
Synonyms: saying, maxim, gnome, adage More Synonyms of aphorism
aphorism in British English
(ˈæfəˌrɪzəm)
noun
a short pithy saying expressing a general truth; maxim
Derived forms
aphorist (ˈaphorist)
noun
Word origin
C16: from Late Latin aphorismus, from Greek aphorismos definition, from aphorizein to define, set limits to, from horos boundary
aphorism in American English
(ˈæfəˌrɪzəm)
noun
1.
a short, concise statement of a principle
2.
a short, pointed sentence expressing a wise or clever observation or a general truth; maxim; adage
SIMILAR WORDS: ˈsaying
Word origin
< OFr & ML: OFr aufforisme < ML aphorismus < LGr aphorismos < Gr, a distinction, determination < aphorizein, to divide, mark off < apo-, from + horizein, to bound: see horizon
Examples of 'aphorism' in a sentence
aphorism
The pawpaw didn't hold out both hands and I took the grapefruit, which had more pith on it than an Oscar Wilde aphorism.
Robert Wilson INSTRUMENTS OF DARKNESS (2002)
He had no final answer to these questions, or rather, no neat aphorism that he cared to formulate as a philosophical truth.
Zindell, David THE BROKEN GOD (2002)
He waited a moment, and then laughed at his own aphorism.
Harcourt, Palma DOUBLE DECEIT (2002)
The trick was to give them such an alternative, which didn't require the mind of a rocket scientist, as the current aphorism went.
Clancy, Tom CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER (2002)
(noun)
Definition
a short clever saying expressing a general truth
one of his favoured aphorisms
Synonyms
saying
that old saying: `Charity begins at home'
maxim
I believe in the maxim `if it ain't broke, don't fix it'.
gnome
adage
The old adage `Every baby brings its own love' usually turns out true.
proverb
the old proverb `where there's a will, there's a way`
dictum
the dictum that it is preferable to be roughly right than precisely wrong
precept
the precept, `If a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well'
axiom
the long-held axiom that education leads to higher income
apothegm
saw
Additional synonyms
in the sense of adage
Definition
a traditional saying that is generally accepted as being true
The old adage `Every baby brings its own love' usually turns out true.
Synonyms
saying,
motto,
maxim,
proverb,
dictum,
precept,
by-word,
saw (old-fashioned),
axiom,
aphorism,
apophthegm (rare)
in the sense of apothegm
Synonyms
saying,
saw (old-fashioned),
maxim,
gnome,
adage,
proverb,
dictum,
precept,
axiom,
aphorism
in the sense of axiom
Definition
a generally accepted principle
the long-held axiom that education leads to higher income