thesis

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the·sis / ˈ[unvoicedth]ēsis/ • n. (pl. -ses / -sēz/ ) 1. a statement or theory that is put forward as a premise to be maintained or proved: his central thesis is that psychological life is not part of the material world. ∎  (in Hegelian philosophy) a proposition forming the first stage in the process of dialectical reasoning. Compare with antithesis, synthesis.2. a long essay or dissertation involving personal research, written by a candidate for a college degree: a doctoral thesis.3. Prosody an unstressed syllable or part of a metrical foot in Greek or Latin verse. Often contrasted with arsis.

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