What are the two properties of a term?

• A. Extension and comprehension
• B. Signification and supposition
• C. Reference and meaning
• D. Denotation and connotation

Answer: (B)

In traditional logic, a term has signification and supposition. Signification is the meaning or concept the term expresses—the idea the term conveys. Supposition is how the term functions in a proposition—the thing it stands for in that statement. For example, the term “man” has signification as the concept of a rational animal; in a sentence like “All men are mortal,” it supposes for all individual men, i.e., it refers to the actual things the sentence is about. The signification stays the same, while the supposition shows how the term points to real or imagined things within a specific claim. This framing best fits the traditional analysis of terms, whereas extension and comprehension describe a different way of looking at terms, and denotation and connotation (or reference and meaning) come from other semantic theories not typically used in this particular context.