I think axiom should fit, but according to its official definition, an axiom is a statement that is taken to be true, and as far as I know, a word can’t make an statement by its own.
I think axiom should fit, but according to its official definition, an axiom is a statement that is taken to be true, and as far as I know, a word can’t make an statement by its own.
Do any words like this actually exist, though? I’d wager that failure to define the word sufficiently is more of a limitation on the definer’s vocabulary than the word itself.
I certainly can’t imagine a word I couldn’t define. Some words are defined by their interrelationship, and that can seem circular… but since that interrelationship is how we make sense of the world, I don’t particularly see the problem. There’s nothing fundamental about that.
My mind went to things like “of” and “is” but it turns out you can define quite a bit about those words and their usage, in a great many words.