Full Idea
In the sense of giving a model for the content of a sentence, its representative power, holism is not a theory of meaning; it is the denial that a theory of meaning is possible.
Gist of Idea
Holism is not a theory of meaning; it is the denial that a theory of meaning is possible
Source
Michael Dummett (The Justification of Deduction [1973], p.309)
Book Reference
Dummett,Michael: 'Truth and Other Enigmas' [Duckworth 1978], p.309
A Reaction
This will obviously be because sentences just don't have meaning in isolation, so their meaning can't be given in terms of the sentences.