"pragmatic" vs "practical"

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Hi,What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? For example, "a pragmatic approach" vs "a practical approach". A lot of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms.Cheers,Michael

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]Hi, What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? For example, "a pragmatic approach" vs "a practical approach". A lot of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms.[/nq]
Maybe one means the same as 'practicable', and the other doesn't ???

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? For example, "a pragmatic approach" vs "a practical approach". A lot of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms.[/nq]
This implication in dictionaries seems to reflect usage, viz. the two words are often used as synonymous. But some differences persist:
The Pragmatic Sanction in European history never called Practical.
Philosophy: Kant called one of his books Practical (not Pragmatic) Reason, but the American school approx.
1900 decided to call itself Pragmatists, not Practicalists.

Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? ... of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms.[/nq]
[nq:1]This implication in dictionaries seems to reflect usage, viz. the two words are often used as synonymous. But some differences ... of his books Practical (not Pragmatic) Reason, but the American school approx. 1900 decided to call itself Pragmatists, not Practicalists.[/nq]
As I reed what you've said, you've given examples of usage preferences, not of differences in connotation. Kant may have thought that "practical reason" and "pragmatic reason" meant exactly the same thing, while choosing to use "pragmatic" because he somehow liked it better.
But did Kant write in English? If Kant named his book in German, whether it's called in English Practical Reason or Pragmatic Reason seems to reflect a translator's preference, not Kant's.
In The New Cassell's German Dictionary , English
"practical" and "pragmatic" are both shown as translatable to German "praktisch", among other things.

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Hi, What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? For example, "a pragmatic approach" vs "a practical approach". A lot of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms. Cheers, Michael[/nq]
Another point of view is that prgamatic is synonymous with one meaning of practical and so, when used in that context, is more emphatic.

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? For example, "a pragmatic approach" vs "a practical approach". A lot of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms.[/nq]
Describing "approach" I don't perceive any difference between them. But my sense is that "pragmatic" is somewhat narrower in scope, applying most properly to a methodology, philosophy, or general attitude an "approach" in other words while "practical" would be a better choice concerning actual applications or results, as when modifying e.g. "implementation", "achievement", or "skill".

Odysseus

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]What is the difference in meaning between "pragmatic" and "practical"? ... of dictionaries seem to imply "pragmatic" and "practical" are synonyms.[/nq]
[nq:1]Describing "approach" I don't perceive any difference between them. But my sense is that "pragmatic" is somewhat narrower in scope, ... while "practical" would be a better choice concerning actual applications or results, as when modifying e.g. "implementation", "achievement", or "skill".[/nq]
Pragmatism is a psychological approach to a problem. Such as:

By default Democracy is a waste of breath, whoever you vote for a politician will get in. A pragmatist would just get on with things.

Whereas a practical approach connotes an engineering point of view such as:
A good practical approach to get rid of a bad politician would be to blow all the ******** up. This makes Guy Fawkes one of the best politicians we never had.
So I suppose we just celebrate his engineering skills pragmatically?

"pragmatic" vs "practical"

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