Meanings
plural terms of art
- A word or phrase whose use or meaning is specific to a particular field of endeavor.
"Juridical power" is a term of art for Foucault. It corresponds to the model of sovereignty and sovereign rights developed during the Renaissance period.
2001, Bernard E. Harcourt, chapter 5, in Illusion of Order1 more example
The opinion in United States v du Pont does not, in any event, render the term "acquiring" in a consent decree a term of art. The Court fails to explain how its opinion there has served to transform the plain term "acquiring" into a "term of art" that would, by common understanding, have the meaning that the Court today ascribes to it.
1975, “United States v. ITT Continental Baking Co.”, in United States Supreme Court Reports, Lawyers Co-operative Publishing Company, page 168Synonyms: technical term
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA word or phrase whose use or meaning is specific to a particular field of endeavor.
Cite this entry
term of art. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/term%20of%20art
“term of art.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/term%20of%20art. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “term of art,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/term%20of%20art.
Source: term of art on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.