--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a specific question has meaning, it…" description: "\"If a specific question has meaning, it must be possible to find operations by which an answer may be given to it ... I believe that many of the questio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg" --- # If a specific question has meaning, it must be possible to… ![“If a specific question has meaning, it must be possible to find operations by which an answer may be given to it ... I believe that many of the questions asked about social and philosophical subjects will be found to be meaningless when examined from the point of view of operations.” quote by Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg) > “If a specific question has meaning, it must be possible to find operations by which an answer may be given to it ... I believe that many of the questions asked about social and philosophical subjects will be found to be meaningless when examined from the point of view of operations.” [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that questions must be operationally definable; otherwise they are meaningless in scientific analysis. **In simple terms:** Questions need measurable answers. Key Takeaway Focus on testable problems. Themes philosophy science logic Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical academic When to use this quote - research design - policy analysis - education - debate Key Concepts operationalism meaningfulness Questions to Reflect On - How to handle ethical dilemmas? - Can meaning exist without measurement? A Different Perspective Not all valuable questions are operational. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Philosophical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophical/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) ## Related quotes > [ “\[T\]he question "What is everything?" has no meaning, even though it seems to be profound. \[...\] The point is, perhaps, that I am not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/t-he-question-what-is-everything-has-no-meaning-even-though-it-seems/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [Faced with the nonsense question 'What is the meaning of a word?' and perhaps dimly recognizing it to be nonsense, we are nevertheless not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-l-austin/faced-with-the-nonsense-question-what-is-the-meaning-of-a-word-and/) [J. L. Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-l-austin/) > [“Modern society has sent men on a quest that is perhaps an inquiry just as thought-provoking as the popular question: what is the meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cage-j-madison/modern-society-has-sent-men-on-a-quest-that-is-perhaps-an-inquiry/) [Cage J. Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cage-j-madison/) > [“To be religious is to have found an answer to the question, 'What is the meaning of life?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quoting-einstein-victor-e-frankl/to-be-religious-is-to-have-found-an-answer-to-the-question-what-is/) quoting Einstein Victor E. Frankl > [I asked: 'What is the meaning of my life, beyond time, cause, and space?' And I replied to quite another question: 'What is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-asked-what-is-the-meaning-of-my-life-beyond-time-cause-and-space/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“Why isn’t he dead?’ he said eventually. ‘That is a good question. After all, meaning well hasn’t been a completely adequate shield in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/why-isn-t-he-dead-he-said-eventually-that-is-a-good-question-after/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [“A moment later she asked me if I loved her. I said that sort of question had no meaning, really; but I supposed I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/a-moment-later-she-asked-me-if-i-loved-her-i-said-that-sort-of/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [O love-why can't you leave me alone? Which is a rhetorical question meaning: for heaven's sake, don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/o-love-why-can-t-you-leave-me-alone-which-is-a-rhetorical-question/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“One note is not music. It is what lies between the notes that makes the music. And what is between them is: their relationship.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-safina/one-note-is-not-music-it-is-what-lies-between-the-notes-that-makes/) [Carl Safina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-safina/) > [Whatever sociology may be, it is the result of constantly asking the question, what is the meaning of this?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-wright-mills/whatever-sociology-may-be-it-is-the-result-of-constantly-asking-the/) [C. Wright Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-wright-mills/) > [“You know as well as we do that right is a question that only has meaning in relations between equals in power. In the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-allison/you-know-as-well-as-we-do-that-right-is-a-question-that-only-has/) [Graham Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-allison/) > [Those who are driven by poverty, those who're free from material worries hunger exhausting labor a joyless existence ask the same question, the question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-acker/those-who-are-driven-by-poverty-those-who-re-free-from-material/) [Kathy Acker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-acker/) > [“Decide yourself who was right: you or the one who questioned you then? Recall the first question; its meaning, though not literally, was this:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/decide-yourself-who-was-right-you-or-the-one-who-questioned-you-then/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [Being religious means asking passionately the question of the meaning of our existence and being willing to receive answers, even if the answers hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/being-religious-means-asking-passionately-the-question-of-the-meaning/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) > [Religion is the state of being grasped by an ultimate concern, a concern which qualifies all other concerns as preliminary and which itself contains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/religion-is-the-state-of-being-grasped-by-an-ultimate-concern-a/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) ## More by Percy Williams Bridgman > [To find the length of an object, we have to perform certain physical operations. The concept of length is therefore fixed when the operations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/to-find-the-length-of-an-object-we-have-to-perform-certain-physical/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [The true meaning of a term is to be found by observing what a man does with it, not by what he says about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/the-true-meaning-of-a-term-is-to-be-found-by-observing-what-a-man/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [It seems to me that there is a good deal of ballyhoo about scientific method. I venture to think that the people who talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/it-seems-to-me-that-there-is-a-good-deal-of-ballyhoo-about-scientific/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [Coincidence is what you have left over when you apply a bad theory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/coincidence-is-what-you-have-left-over-when-you-apply-a-bad-theory/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [I can see no justification whatever for the attitude which refuses on purely a priori grounds to accept action at a distance ... Such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/i-can-see-no-justification-whatever-for-the-attitude-which-refuses-on/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [My point of view is that science is essentially private, whereas the almost universal counter point of view, explicitly stated in many of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/my-point-of-view-is-that-science-is-essentially-private-whereas-the/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [The first business of a man of science is to proclaim the truth as he finds it, and let the world adjust itself as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/the-first-business-of-a-man-of-science-is-to-proclaim-the-truth-as-he/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [But ... the working scientist ... is not consciously following any prescribed course of action, but feels complete freedom to utilize any method or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/but-the-working-scientist-is-not-consciously-following-any-prescribed/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [The result is that a generation of physicists is growing up who have never exercised any particular degree of individual initiative, who have had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/the-result-is-that-a-generation-of-physicists-is-growing-up-who-have/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [“The attitude which the man in the street unconsciously adopts towards science is capricious and varied. At one moment he scorns the scientist for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/the-attitude-which-the-man-in-the-street-unconsciously-adopts-towards/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [There is no adequate defense, except stupidity, against the impact of a new idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/there-is-no-adequate-defense-except-stupidity-against-the-impact-of-a/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [In general, we mean by any concept nothing more than a set of operations; the concept is synonymous with the corresponding set of operations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/in-general-we-mean-by-any-concept-nothing-more-than-a-set-of/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [The operational approach demands that we make our reports and do our thinking in the freshest terms of which we are capable, in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/the-operational-approach-demands-that-we-make-our-reports-and-do-our/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [“Not only are there meaningless questions, but many of the problems with which the human intellect has tortured itself turn out to be only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/not-only-are-there-meaningless-questions-but-many-of-the-problems/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) > [Nature does not count nor do integers occur in nature. Man made them all, integers and all the rest, Kronecker to the contrary notwithstanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/nature-does-not-count-nor-do-integers-occur-in-nature-man-made-them/) [Percy Williams Bridgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) [Explore all 21 Percy Williams Bridgman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/) ## More Answers quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. Lecturing to children is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-have-long-felt-that-the-way-to-keep-children-out-of-trouble-is-to/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [“As long as you keep searching,the answers will come.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-kynock/as-long-as-you-keep-searching-the-answers-will-come/) [Mitch Kynock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-kynock/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-norville/there-is-a-comfort-in-rituals-and-rituals-provide-a-framework-for/) [Deborah Norville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-norville/) > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Instead of asking a girl how she feels, try looking through her recently listened to songs. The lyrics are the answer to all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/instead-of-asking-a-girl-how-she-feels-try-looking-through-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For someone to ask 'Who did you play for' and to be able to answer a single name 'Liverpool' that would be brilliant...I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/for-someone-to-ask-who-did-you-play-for-and-to-be-able-to-answer-a/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [Enjoying life isn't about finding the answers, but living the questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-margolis/enjoying-life-isn-t-about-finding-the-answers-but-living-the-questions/) [Sue Margolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-margolis/) Browse all 7,843 Answers quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If a specific question has meaning, it must be possible to find operations by which an answer may be given to it ... I believe that many of the questions asked about social and philosophical subjects will be found to be meaningless when examined from the point of view of operations.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Percy Williams Bridgman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-must-be-possible-to-find/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Answers" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-must-be-possible-to-find/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40d/percy-williams-bridgman-26709_answers_if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-mu_2484583.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If a specific question has meaning, it must be possible to find operations by which an answer may be given…” — Percy Williams Bridgman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Percy Williams Bridgman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-williams-bridgman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If a specific question has meaning,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-must-be-possible-to-find/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-williams-bridgman/if-a-specific-question-has-meaning-it-must-be-possible-to-find/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```