Basic Terms

First let us look up the definitions of the key terms in Webster's NewWorld Dictionary.

  • ontology 1. the branch of metaphysics dealing with the nature of being, reality, or ultimate substance: cf. PHENOMENOLOGY 2. pl. ontologies a particular theory about being or reality

  • phenomenology 1. the philosophical study of phenomena, as distinguished from ontology 2. the branch of science that classifies and describes its phenomena without any attempt at metaphysical explanation

  • enterprise 1. an undertaking; project; specif., a) a bold, difficult, dangerous, or important undertaking b) a business venture or company

    • As we shall see, the philosophical word senses of `ontology' may be farther away from its emerging meaning in computer science than is word sense 2. of `phenomenology'.
    Concerning `enterprise', we are interested here both in word sense 1. a), as the broader term, and in b), as the narrower term.

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