Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - predication

 noun  Etymology: Middle English predicacion, from Anglo-French predicaciun, from Latin praedication-, praedicatio, from praedicare  Date: 14th century  1. archaic  a. an act of proclaiming or preaching  b. sermon  2. an act or instance of predicating: as  a. the expression of action, state, or quality by a grammatical predicate  b. the logical affirmation of something about another; especially assignment of something to a class