ontological

[ on-tl-oj-i-kuhl ]

adjective

1. of or relating to ontology, the branch of metaphysics that studies the nature of existence or being as such; metaphysical:

   Some of the U.S. founders held an ontological belief in natural rights.

Other Words From

• nonon·to·logi·cal adjective
• unon·to·logi·cal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of ontological¹

First recorded in 1700–10; ontolog(y) ( def ) + -ical ( def )

Example Sentences

And to do this job right — hell, to even get beyond our own trembling ontological frailty long enough to learn something about this existence — we have to fight anti-science attitudes in every quarter, even our own.

From Salon

I think that’s important, as an ontological model of cinema.

From Los Angeles Times

Without diving into some kind of ontological rumination, I think we can agree that this isn’t really about “existence.”

From New York Times

This ontological shock would be different from mere discovery or invention; it’s not even synonymous with what the philosopher Thomas Kuhn called a “paradigm shift,” when scientific consensus is amended by some revolutionary new theory.

From Slate

In other words, we’d experience ontological shock.

From Slate

Related Words

• existential
• metaphysical
• phenomenological