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transcendental

adj
/ˌtɹæn(t)s(ɛ)nˈdɛntl̩/UK/ˌtɹænˌ(t)sɛnˈdɛntl̩/US

Etymology

The adjective is a learned borrowing from Medieval Latin transcendentālis + English -al (suffix meaning of or relating to forming adjectives; and forming nouns, especially of verbal action). Transcendentālis is derived from Latin trānscendentem + ‑ālis (suffix forming adjectives of relationship); and trānscendentem is the accusative singular form of trānscendēns (“exceeding, surpassing, transcending”), the present active participle of trānscendō (“to climb, cross, pass, or step over; to exceed, surpass, transcend”), from trāns- (prefix meaning ‘across; beyond; through’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *terh₂- (“to cross over; to overcome; to pass through”)) + scandō (“to ascend, climb; etc.”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to ascend; to jump up”)). The noun is derived from the adjective.

  1. derived from *skend-✻ — “to ascend; to jump up”
  2. derived from *terh₂-✻ — “to cross over; to overcome; to pass through”
  3. derived from trānscendentem
  4. learned borrowing from transcendentālis

Definitions

  1. Synonym of transcendent (“surpassing usual limits

    Synonym of transcendent (“surpassing usual limits; excelling; extraordinary”).

    • [T]he Deity himſelf, tho' he perceiveth neither Pleaſure, nor Pain, nor any thing elſe, as vve do: yet muſt needs have a Perfect and Tranſcendental Perception, both of Pleaſure, and Pain, and of all other things.
    • All theſe conſiderations hovvever vvere belovv the tranſcendental dignity of the Revolution Society.

  2. In the philosophy of Aristotle (384–322 B.C.E.)

    In the philosophy of Aristotle (384–322 B.C.E.): synonym of transcendent (“transcending or extending beyond a single category”); also, synonym of metaphysical (“of or relating to the basic structure of reality”).

  3. In the philosophy of Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) or similar philosophies

    In the philosophy of Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) or similar philosophies: concerned with the a priori or intuitive basis of knowledge, independent of experience.

    • The chief mystics in Germany, it would appear, are the Transcendental Philosophers, [Immanuel] Kant, [Johann Gottlieb] Fichte, and [Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph] Schelling!
  4. ›+ 8 more definitions

    1. In the philosophy associated with Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)

      In the philosophy associated with Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882): of or relating to transcendentalism (“a philosophy which stresses intuition and spirituality”).

    2. Beyond one's ordinary experience

      Beyond one's ordinary experience; extraordinary.

      • This mental materialism makes the value of English transcendental genius; […]

    3. Existing in the imagination

      Existing in the imagination; abstract, conceptual.

      • To such length can transcendental moonshine, cast by some morbidly radiating [Samuel Taylor] Coleridge into the chaos of a fermenting life, act magically there, and produce divulsions and convulsions and diseased developments.

    4. Mystical, superhuman, supernatural.

      • And it chanced that the direction of my scientific studies, which led wholly towards the mystic and the transcendental, rëacted and shed a strong light on this consciousness of the perennial war among my members.

    5. Of an element of an extension field

      Of an element of an extension field: not algebraic, that is, not the root of any polynomial that has positive degree and rational coefficients; also, of an extension field: that contains elements which are not algebraic.

      • Suppose that Flt;E is purely transcendental. Show that any simple extension of F contained in E (but not equal to F) is transcendental over F.

    6. Of a function or number

      Of a function or number: not algebraic.

      • The numbers e and #92;pi are transcendental—written as decimals, the numbers after the decimal point continue infinitely and do not enter a permanently repeating pattern.

    7. A thing which is transcendental (all adjective senses).

      • The transcendental is a key notion in [Martin] Heidegger's thought. […] [This collection of essays] makes a case for the continuing significance of the transcendental in philosophy more broadly.

    8. Synonym of transcendentalist (“one who believes in transcendentalism

      Synonym of transcendentalist (“one who believes in transcendentalism; a philosopher who asserts that true knowledge is obtained by faculties of the mind that transcend sensory experience”).

The neighborhood

Derived

nontranscendental, purely transcendental, semitranscendental, supertranscendental, transcendental critique, transcendental ego, transcendental function, transcendental idealism, transcendentalise, transcendentalize, transcendentalism, transcendentality, transcendentally, transcendental materialism, transcendental meditation, transcendentalness, transcendental number, transcendental number theory, transcendental realism, transseries, untranscendental

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for transcendental. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA