Frege's distinction between sense and reference
Sense and reference
Frege's distinction between sense and reference
Frege's theory differentiates between the meaning a term expresses (sense) and the object it refers to (reference). He posits that even if 'morning star' and 'evening star' refer to the same object (Venus), they have different senses because they express different thoughts.
Example
'Morning star' and 'evening star' both refer to Venus, but they convey different information: 'morning star' refers to Venus as seen in the morning, while 'evening star' refers to Venus as seen in the evening.
Remember this
Understanding this distinction helps clarify how language can convey different meanings even when referring to the same object.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Related concepts
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Deconstruction
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Nominalism
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