formula

1. (mathematics) Any mathematical rule expressed symbolically.Examples: "x=(-b±√)/(2a) is a formula for finding the roots of the quadratic equation ax² + bx + c = 0."Synonyms: mathematical formulacountableuncountable

2. (chemistry) A symbolic expression of the structure of a compound.Examples: "H₂O is the formula for water."Synonyms: chemical formulacountableuncountable

3. (chiefly linguistics) A fixed phrase or set of words intended to be interpeted non-literally, typically used attitudinally or as part of convention; a formulation.Examples: "Avoid the typical epistolic formalae, such as "Kind regards"."countableuncountable

4. (especially religion) A formal statement of doctrine.Examples: "The extract from the Missal of Constance, which was printed before the editio princeps […] does not contain the formulae for Advent, Sundays after Epiphany, Lent and the Sundays after Easter and Pentecost; […]"countableespeciallyuncountable

5. (countable, uncountable) Ellipsis of infant formula, drink given to babies to substitute for mother's milk.Examples: "They tried switching formulas, and it seemed to work: the baby seemed more content while feeding."; "Many women advocate for formula, insisting that women who advocate breast-feeding have become self-righteous “lactavists,” as one writer puts it."abbreviationalt-ofcountableellipsisuncountable

6. (logic) A syntactic expression of a proposition, built up from quantifiers, logical connectives, variables, relation and operation symbols, and, depending on the type of logic, possibly other operators such as modal, temporal, deontic or epistemic ones.countableuncountable