Which term appears in both premises but not in the conclusion?

• A. Middle term
• B. Major term
• C. Minor term
• D. Predicate term

Answer: (A)

In a categorical syllogism, there is a term that serves to link the two premises but does not appear in the conclusion. That term is the middle term. It shows up in both premises as the connecting notion, yet the conclusion pulls only the subject term (the thing being spoken about) and the predicate term (what’s said about it). The middle term isn’t part of what is finally asserted.

For example: All mammals are animals. All dogs are mammals. Therefore, all dogs are animals. Here, mammals is the middle term: it appears in both premises to connect dogs to animals, but it does not appear in the conclusion. The term that is in the conclusion as the subject is dogs (the minor term), and the term being asserted about it is animals (the major term).