Lato sensu and stricto sensu, of course, are expressions that do not cause us any strangeness, since we commonly find them around. Thus, given this very usual aspect, we often do not pay attention to understand about its true meaning - a fact that occurs not only with the words in question, but also with other cases that guide our daily.
Thus, if you are not yet a connoisseur, as well as occasionally you have felt asked about the differences that demarcate the expressions under study, the article in evidence is guided by presenting the characteristics related to each from them.
Both are part of a set of Latin expressions that make up the academic world, as well as so many others, such as ibidem, idem, curriculum vitae, apud etc.
With regard to use, this is due to the intention to expand or narrow the scope of coverage with regard to a given concept. Thus, some sociologists attribute to the “family Lato sensu” all the ascendants and descendants of a given citizen, while the “family stricto sensu
” is reserved only for their spouses and children. In the legal context, there are scholars who define jurisprudence Lato sensu as the set of all jurisdictional decisions; while jurisprudence stricto sensu applies to decisions that relate to a particular case type.Do not stop now... There's more after the advertising ;)
Contextualizing such expressions in the academic world, postgraduate courses Lato sensu are defined as being those of specialization in any area of knowledge. Already the courses stricto sensu apply to master's, doctoral and post-doctoral programs.
Armed with such perceptions, it is relevant to recapitulate about two important details – the way they are defined, that is: lato sensu = broad, extensive sense; and stricto sensu = more restricted sense. The other is the way we pronounce both expressions, materialized by "sensu lato and sensu strictu”, and the accents are demarcated only by way of identifying the tone.
By Vânia Duarte
Graduated in Letters
Brazil School Team
Portuguese - Grammar - Brazil School
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
DUARTE, Vânia Maria do Nascimento. "Lato sensu or stricto sensu?"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/gramatica/lato-sensu-ou-stricto-sensu.htm. Accessed on June 28, 2021.
