nominalism

[ nom-uh-nl-iz-uh m ]
/ ˈnɒm ə nlˌɪz əm /

noun

(in medieval philosophy) the doctrine that general or abstract words do not stand for objectively existing entities and that universals are no more than names assigned to them. Compare conceptualism, realism(def 5a).

Origin of nominalism

From the French word nominalisme, dating back to 1830–40. See nominal, -ism

OTHER WORDS FROM nominalism

Words nearby nominalism

nominal par, nominal scale, nominal sentence, nominal value, nominal wages, nominalism, nominalize, nominally, nominate, nomination, nominative

Example sentences from the Web for nominalism

British Dictionary definitions for nominalism

nominalism
/ (ˈnɒmɪnəˌlɪzəm) /

noun

the philosophical theory that the variety of objects to which a single general word, such as dog, applies have nothing in common but the name Compare conceptualism, realism

Derived forms of nominalism

nominalist, noun, adjective nominalistic, adjective