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🧠 A belief system 🌌 Beyond physical 📚 Philosophy branch
metaphysic

metaphysic

2 9.9
A set of ideas about what reality is and why it exists
  • noun
  • /ˌmɛtəˈfɪzɪk/
  • Formal
: metafísica
  • And so it turns out we actually need some sort of metaphysic to structure our moral code.
  • private metaphysics
  • classical metaphysics
  • metaphysics and religion

And so it turns out we actually need some sort of metaphysic to structure our moral code.

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Examples

  • He was interested in developing a metaphysic that could unify both scientific principles and human experiences.

  • In short, much of Schopenhauer's metaphysics could be made the basis of a less pessimistic view of the world.

    Academic text (1997)

  • And now enter the the title of the book, The Metaphysics of Sensory Experience.

  • And then we derive our metaphysics from that, right?

  • We all remember how Allen says he got kicked out of college for cheating on a metaphysics test.

    Academic text (2008)

  • The relationship between metaphysics and modern science and technology traditionally had been viewed as one of antagonism.

    Academic text (1995)

  • Thomas Aquinas explained the formal metaphysics of this passivity as early as the 13th century.

    Academic text (2008)

  • Madison, Hamilton, and the Abolitionists of 1868 all believed in the moral metaphysics of John Locke.

    Academic text (2008)

  • More recently, reformed political theorist Jonathan Chaplin raised a question based on subsidiarity's underlying metaphysic:

    Academic text (2008)

  • Many philosophical discussions about ethics require a foundational metaphysic that explains our understanding of existence.

Synonyms

theory
vsmetaphysic
621 5.0

A belief people use to guide what they do, often not proven

is a defined set of beliefs about fundamental reality rather than an unproven idea
belief system
vsmetaphysic
48 3.8

A set of ideas and values that shape how people think and act

focuses specifically on beliefs about fundamental reality and existence
metaphysics
vsmetaphysic
17 9.9

Study of what is real and what exists

is a single system of beliefs about the nature of reality

How Metaphysical

philosophy
387 4.4
metaphysic
  • Formal
2 9.9
view
∞ 1.5
opinion
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

metaphysic singular
metaphysics plural

Morphology

metaphysic = physic (opaque) = meta + physic

Although the form is segmentable, the sense 'a system of beliefs about reality' is a learned philosophical meaning that is not directly recoverable from the visible parts for many learners.

Etymology

Metaphysic comes from Greek parts meta- 'beyond' and physis 'nature', the same root as physics. A metaphysic can mean a system of beliefs that explains what lies 'beyond nature', so it is a set of basic ideas about reality.