From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpremiseprem‧ise /ˈpremɪs/ ●●○ W3 noun 1 → premises2 [countable] (also premiss British English)IDEA a statement or idea that you accept as true and use as a base for developing other ideas The idea that there is life on other planets is the central premise of the novel.premise that the premise that an accused person is innocent until they are proved guilty
Examples from the Corpus
premise• This section too starts with a premise, which is that individual pupils are active participants in their own education.• The basic premise is that they think they know better than anyone else.• I believe his whole argument is based on a false premise.• The first premise is that humans are wanting animals whose needs depend on what they already have.• The important thing is the premise, the theoretical first step.• American justice works on the premise that an accused person is innocent until they are proved guilty.• But so far, the first two episodes have been bogged down with setting up the premise and too many location scenes.• The Prime Minister I agree with the premise underlying my hon. Friend's question.• The underlying premise of the global market ideology is that every country will earn most of its income from exports.premise that• And the action premise that completes this credo may seem totally ridiculous in these troubled times.• His question is old-fashioned, rational and optimistic in its premise that technology should be at the service of enlightenment.• But the original premise that all statements are either empirical or analytical is itself in neither of these categories.• The program is based on the premise that drug addiction can be cured.• The present research is based on the premise that family style of emotional expression is a key factor in this respect.• If that many did indeed die, I would question the premise that most of them were innocent.• The model of the post-heroic leader that we discussed earlier is certainly based upon the premise that individuals will respond to encouragement.Origin premise (1300-1400) French prémisse, from Medieval Latin praemissa, from Latin praemittere “to place ahead” 