terms of art
Professional insider language
Terms of art are words or phrases that have specific, precise meanings within a particular profession, field, or discipline—meanings that may differ from their ordinary usage.
In law, "consideration" means something given in exchange for a promise; in music, "resolution" refers to the movement from dissonance to consonance.
The contract was full of legal terms of art that the layperson couldn't decipher.
These specialized vocabularies allow experts to communicate with precision but can exclude outsiders from understanding.
System of specialized terms
- lexiconVocabulary of a language
- vernacularEveryday regional speech
- legaleseAttorneys' technical jargon
- technobabbleFake scientific-sounding nonsense
shoptalk · buzzwords · argot · cant · parlance · vocabulary · phraseology · idiom
Skill in making objects
- masteryComplete skill or control
- proficiencySkilled performance level
- techniqueSkilled way of performing
- finesseSubtle, deft handling
competence · adeptness · connoisseurship · specialization · trained eye
Legal rights over inventions
- copyrightExclusive reproduction rights
- trademarkRegistered commercial identifier
- patentObvious; inventor's monopoly
- trade secretHidden business knowledge
infringement · fair use · proprietary · license · non-disclosure · confidentiality · ownership · registration
nomenclature
System of specialized terms
- lexiconVocabulary of a language
- vernacularEveryday regional speech
- legaleseAttorneys' technical jargon
technobabble · shoptalk · buzzwords · argot · cant · parlance · vocabulary · phraseology · idiom · specialized language
craftsmanship
Skill in making objects
- masteryComplete skill or control
- proficiencySkilled performance level
- techniqueSkilled way of performing
finesse · competence · adeptness · connoisseurship · specialization · trained eye
intellectual property
Legal rights over inventions
- copyrightExclusive reproduction rights
- trademarkRegistered commercial identifier
- patentObvious; inventor's monopoly
trade secret · infringement · fair use · proprietary · license · non-disclosure · confidentiality · ownership · registration · protection
terms of arteveryday language
Ordinary spoken communication
common parlance · plain English · colloquial language · layman's terms · plain language
terms of artslang
Informal in-group vocabulary
colloquial speech · informal language · conversational language · vulgarisms · cant
term, terms, art, arts, arty, artful, artfully, artless, artisan