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Definite description
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<p>In <a href="/facts/Formal_semantics_/FlWb7Hxp">formal semantics</a> and <a href="/facts/Philosophy_of_language/qwNCwF4W">philosophy of language</a>, a definite description is a <a href="/facts/Denotation/oABEtLtA">denoting</a> <a href="/facts/Phrase/mbnD0ksH">phrase</a> in the form of "the X" where X is a noun-phrase or a singular common <a href="/facts/Noun/SsnDNfkX">noun</a>. The definite description is <i>proper</i> if X applies to a unique individual or object. For example: "<a href="/facts/Yuri_Gagarin/ucwoarjc">the first person in space</a>" and "<a href="/facts/Bill_Clinton/x5mwYkVh">the 42nd President of the United States of America</a>" are proper. The definite descriptions "the person in space" and "the Senator from Ohio" are <i>improper</i> because the noun phrase X applies to more than one thing, and the definite descriptions "the first man on Mars" and "the Senator from Washington D.C." are <i>improper</i> because X applies to nothing. Improper descriptions raise some difficult questions about the <a href="/facts/Law_of_excluded_middle/tDhbugCN">law of excluded middle</a>, <a href="/facts/Denotation/oABEtLtA">denotation</a>, <a href="/facts/Linguistic_modality/hQmMKH2s">modality</a>, and <a href="/facts/Mental_content/Y5JhtFj4">mental content</a>. </p>