philosophy

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
2. n. Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
3. n. A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry: the philosophy of Hume.
4. n. The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.
5. n. The disciplines presented in university curriculums of science and the liberal arts, except medicine, law, and theology.
6. n. The discipline comprising logic, ethics, aesthetics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
7. n. A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or activity; an underlying theory: an original philosophy of advertising.
8. n. A system of values by which one lives: has an unusual philosophy of life.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. The body of highest truth; the organized sum of science; the science of which all others are branches; the science of the most fundamental matters. ; . This is identified by different schools — with the account of the elementary factors operative in the universe; the science of principles, or the matter, form, causes, and ends of things in general
2. n. A special branch of knowledge of high speculative interest
3. n. Any such science, as alchemy (in Chaucer).
4. n. Theology: this nse of the word was common in the middle ages
5. n. Psychology and ethics; moral philosophy.
6. n. Physics; natural philosophy.
7. n. The fundamental part of any science; propædeutic considerations upon which a special science is founded; general principles connected with a science, but not forming part of it; a theory connected with any branch of human activity: as, the philosophy of. science; the philosophy of history; the philosophy of government.
8. n. A doctrine which aims to be philosophy in any of the above senses.
9. n. A calm temper which is unruffled by small annoyances; a stoical impassiveness under adversity
10. n. See the adjectives.
11. n. The philosophy of Hegel. Also called objective philosophy.

Wiktionary

1. n. uncountable, originally The love of wisdom.
2. n. uncountable An academic discipline that seeks truth through reasoning rather than empiricism.
3. n. countable A comprehensive system of belief.
4. n. countable A view or outlook regarding fundamental principles underlying some domain.
5. n. countable A general principle (usually moral).
6. n. archaic A broader branch of (non-applied) science.
7. v. To philosophize.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. Literally, the love of, inducing the search after, wisdom; in actual usage, the knowledge of phenomena as explained by, and resolved into, causes and reasons, powers and laws.
2. n. A particular philosophical system or theory; the hypothesis by which particular phenomena are explained.
3. n. Practical wisdom; calmness of temper and judgment; equanimity; fortitude; stoicism.
4. n. Reasoning; argumentation.
5. n. The course of sciences read in the schools.
6. n. A treatise on philosophy.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a belief (or system of beliefs) accepted as authoritative by some group or school
2. n. the rational investigation of questions about existence and knowledge and ethics
3. n. any personal belief about how to live or how to deal with a situation