Terms can be classified as follows
- Concrete and abstract terms:
Concrete terms are things. They are regarded as anything possessing attributes or qualities e.g. table, bucket, chair, bag, bed, mother, son, pen, pencil, ruler etc.
Abstract terms are qualities or attributes of persons or things .e.g. peaceful, goodness, rude, aggressive.
- Positive and negative terms:
Position terms affirm or suggests the presence of an attribute. E.g. alive, happiness, true, handsome, beautiful, intelligent.
Negative terms are those that deny the presence of an attribute or suggest its absence .e.g. dark, untrue, wicked, dangerous, ugly, and dirty.
- Privative and infinite terms
Privative terms are those that suggests the absence of a necessary attribute where its presence was expected. E.g. dumb, deaf, bald, blind, orphan
An infinite term is a concrete general term negated. It has no limit to its meaning e.g. not-man
- Contradictory and contrary terms
Contradictory: two terms are said to be contradictory when one is the negative of the orther. The two terms are mutually exclusive e.g. happy and unhappy, literate and illiterate, fortunate and unfortunate, trustworthy and untrustworthy, black and not-black, dishonest, illegal, unfaithful, inhuman etc.
Contrary: two terms are said to be contrary when they are the most opposite to each other under the same class. E.g. wise and foolish, white and black, strong and weak etc.
- Collective and distribute terms.
Collective terms apply to groups, of persons, of things considered as acting together but not individuals comprising the group e.g. parliament, team, the army, militants, swamp of bees, flog of sheep, fled of cars, bunch of something about each member of the group individually. E.g. executive, staff, committee etc.
- Common and singular terms
Common terms are always expressed in plural form. E.g. plates, chairs, boys etc.
A singular term refers to one thing or an individual, singular terms are subjects of their propositions e.g. Socrates, Plato, the first lady, the divisional officer, the principal, the chairman etc.
- Correlative terms are two terms related through some common fact or principle e.g. husband and wife, bread and butter, rights and duties, might and rigour.
