explanans Philos.
(ɛkspləˈnænz)
[L., pres. pple. of explānāre: see explain v.]
The explaining element in an explanation; the explanatory premisses. (Opp. explanandum.)
| 1948 Hempel & Oppenheim in Philos. of Sci. XV. 136 We divide an explanation into two major constituents, the explanandum and the explanans. 1962 L. J. Cohen Diversity of Meaning iv. 133 An explanation of naming that is futile and circular because the explanans cannot be conceived except through the explanandum. |