folklore

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

The collective of proofs or techniques which are widely known among mathematicians, but have never been formally published.

Register: slang

Where it’s used: Used American English
Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “folklore” mean?

The collective of proofs or techniques which are widely known among mathematicians, but have never been formally published.

Is “folklore” formal or informal?

folklore is generally slang.