Relating to or concerning form itself rather than content or substance; emphasizing structural elements.
From French 'formel,' derived from Late Latin 'formalis' (relating to form), from 'forma' (form, shape). The term evolved to denote matters of procedure and external arrangement rather than essence.
Medieval logic teachers loved this word—they'd use it to distinguish between 'formal' arguments that follow correct rules versus ones that might be true but break the rules of reasoning. It's why we still have 'formal logic' as a discipline.
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