RATIONAL • DICCIONARIO INGLES.COM • Definition of Rational

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/rˈæʃənəl/ /rˈæʃnəl/ Listen

adjective

Rational adj.

1.

Relating to the reason; not physical; mental. "Moral philosophy was his chiefest end; for the rational, the natural, and mathematics... were but simple pastimes in comparison of the other."

2.

Having reason, or the faculty of reasoning; endowed with reason or understanding; reasoning. "It is our glory and happiness to have a rational nature."

3.

Agreeable to reason; not absurd, preposterous, extravagant, foolish, fanciful, or the like; wise; judicious; as, rational conduct; a rational man.

4.

(Chem.) Expressing the type, structure, relations, and reactions of a compound; graphic; said of formulae. See under Formula.

Rational horizon. (Astron.) See Horizon, 2 (b).

Rational quantity (Alg.), one that can be expressed without the use of a radical sign, or in exact parts of unity; opposed to irrational or radical quantity.

Rational symptom (Med.), one elicited by the statements of the patient himself and not as the result of a physical examination.

Synonyms: Sane; sound; intelligent; reasonable; sensible; wise; discreet; judicious. Rational, reasonable. Rational has reference to reason as a faculty of the mind, and is opposed to irrational; as, a rational being, a rational state of mind, rational views, etc. In these cases the speculative reason is more particularly, referred to. Reasonable has reference to the exercise of this faculty for practical purposes, and means, governed or directed by reason; as, reasonable desires or plans; a reasonable charge; a reasonable prospect of success. "What higher in her society thou find'st Attractive, human, rational, love still." "A law may be reasonable in itself, although a man does not allow it, or does not know the reason of the lawgivers."

noun

Rational n. A rational being.

See images of 'Rational'

Etymology of 'Rational'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Rational" Quotes from Famous Books

... lies uncultivated. By thinning the woods and draining the land, the badness of the climate would be lessened. It is already, even without cultivation, very fruitful; and how much this might be increased by a proper and rational mode of treatment. Rich grass grows everywhere, mixed with the best herbs and clover. Fruit grows wild; the vines run up to the tops of the highest trees. It is said that in time of rain the ground is so soft, that only wooden ploughs are used. Turkish corn is most ...

— A Woman's Journey Round the World • Ida Pfeiffer

... this work has been recently appealed to in favour of a visionary theory![86] Astle gravely observes, that "with respect to Writings attributed to the Antediluvians, it seems not only decent but rational to say that we know nothing concerning them." Without alluding to living writers, Dr. Parsons, in his erudite "Remains of Japhet," tracing the origin of the alphabetical character, supposes that letters were known to Adam! Some, too, have noticed astronomical ...

— Curiosities of Literature, Vol. 1 (of 3) • Isaac D'Israeli

... to them the exact distinction between the several kinds of white blood corpuscles, a rational definition of leukaemia, polynuclear leucocytosis, and the knowledge of the appearances of degeneration and regeneration of the red blood corpuscles, and of their degeneration in haemoglobinaemic conditions. ...

— Histology of the Blood - Normal and Pathological • Paul Ehrlich

... promote and achieve the protection, scientific study, and rational use of Antarctic seals, and to maintain a satisfactory balance within the ecological system ...

— The 2003 CIA World Factbook • United States. Central Intelligence Agency

... breasts; her arms singularly strong, at perfect rest; her hands, exquisitely delicate. In her right, she holds a branching and leaf-bearing rod, (the syllogism); in her left, a scorpion with double sting, (the dilemma)—more generally, the powers of rational ...

— Mornings in Florence • John Ruskin

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