Philosophy definitions and example sentences on Wordnik

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Definitions (44)

American Heritage Dictionary (8)

noun Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
noun Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
noun A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry: the philosophy of Hume.

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Century Dictionary (32)

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; with the science of the absolute; met aphysics; with the science of science; the theory of cognition; logic. In Greek, philosophy originally signified culture; but from Aristotle down it had two meanings — speculative knowledge, and the study of the highest things, metaphysics. Chrysippus defined it as the science of things divine and human. In the middle ages philosophy was understood to embrace all the speculative sciences: hence the faculty and degree of arts in German universities are called the faculty and degree in philosophy. In philosophy, the contemplations of man do either penetrate unto God or are circumferred to nature, or are reflected or reverted upon himself. Out of which several inquiries there do arise three knowledges, divine philosophy, natural philosophy, and human philosophy, or humanity. Bacon, Advancement of Learning, ii. Philosophy has been defined: —The science of things divine and human, and the causes in which they are contained; —The science of effects by their causes; —The science of sufficient reasons; —The science of things possible, inasmuch as they are possible; —The science of things, evidently deduced from first principles;—The science of truths, sensible and abstract.; —The application of reason to its legitimate objects; —The science of the relations of all knowledge to the necessary ends of human reason; —The science of the original form of the ego or mental self;. —The science of science; —The science of the absolute;. —The science of the absolute indifference of the ideal and real. Sir W. Hamilton, Metaphysics, iii. All knowledge of reason is … either based on concepts or on the construction of concepts; the former being called philosophical, the later mathematical …. The system of all philosophical knowledge is called philosophy. It must be taken objectively, if we understand by it the type of criticising all philosophical attempts, which is to serve for the criticism of every subjective philosophy, however various and changeable the systems may be. In this manner philosophy is a mere idea of a possible science which exists nowhere in the concrete, but which we may try to approach on different paths …. So far the concept of philosophy is only scholastic …. But there is also a universal, or, if we may say so, a cosmical concept (conceptus cosmicns) of philosophy, which always formed the real foundation of that name …. In this sense philosophy is the science of the relations of all knowledge to the essential aims of human reason. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason (tr. by Müller), II. 719. Philosophy is an all-comprehensive Synthesis of the doctrines and methods of science; a coherent body of theorems concerning the Cosmos, and concerning Man in his relations to the Cosmos of which he is a part. J. Fiske, Cosmic Philos., I. 9. That philosophy only means psychology and morals, or in the last resort metaphysics, is an idea slowly developed through the eighteenth century, owing to the victorious advances of science. Edinburgh Rev., CLXV. 95.
A special branch of knowledge of high speculative interest
Any such science, as alchemy (in Chaucer). Voydeth your man and lat him be theroute, And shet the dore, whyls we ben aboute Our privetee, that no man us espye Whyls that we werke in this philosophye. Chaucer, Canon's Yeoman's Tale, l. 128.

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Now this love is called by the Greek word philosophy, the whole virtue of which no created intelligence can comprehend; for she is believed to be the mother of all good things: Wisdom vii. — The Love of Books The Philobiblon of Richard de Bury
This philosophy was applied to the album: not since the release of — NME.COM - News
But if only this philosophy was always appropriate. — Latest News
This philosophy has been a contributor to our current overall mess, not just technology. — GMSV
And right on the heels of that aspect of their philosophy is their commitment to providing more of everything for free. — Traffick

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science · religion · doctrine · history · conception · wisdom · morality · culture · theology · criticism

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philosophy: philosophies

Etymologies (2)

American Heritage Dictionary (1)

Middle English philosophie, from Old French, from Latin philosophia, from Greek philosophiā, from philosophos, lover of wisdom, philosopher; see philosopher.

Century Dictionary (1)

from Middle English philosophie, filosofie, from Old French philosophie, filosofie, French philosophie = Spanish filosofía = Portuguese philosophia = Italian filosofia = Dutch filozofie = German philosophie = Danish Swedish filosofi, from Latin philosophia, from Greek φιλοσοφία, love of knowledge and wisdom, from φιλόσοφος, a philosopher, one who speculates on the nature of things, existence, freedom, and truth; in ecclesiastical writers applied to one who leads a life of contemplation and self-denial; literally ‘one who loves wisdom’ (a term first used, according to the tradition, by Pythagoras, who preferred to call himself φιλόσοφος, one who loves wisdom, instead of σοφός, a sage); in later use (Hesychius) in the sense ‘loving a handicraft or art’; from φιλεῑν, love, + σοφία, wisdom, skill, art, from σοφός, wise, skilful: see sophist.

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