ontological

adjective

on·​to·​log·​i·​cal ˌän-tə-ˈlä-ji-kəl 

1

: of or relating to ontology

an ontological principle

2

: relating to or based upon being or existence

Virtual environments engage millions of people and billions of dollars each year. What is the ontological status of the virtual objects that populate those environments?

—David Leech Anderson

ontologically

ˌän-tə-ˈlä-ji-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Examples of ontological in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And with that comes profound ontological shock. —Josh Weiss, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025

Moten provides the ontological frame that haunts much of the preceding work: the notion that Blackness is not a category within being but a rupture of it. —The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 17 July 2025

This floods the novel with a pervasive ontological instability; at the same time, these ghostly presences become an organizing principle for the style and form of the book itself. —Katie Kitamura, Harpers Magazine, 16 July 2025

These categories aren’t timeless ontological judgments—they’re practical tools that help the government fulfill its duties. —Paisley Currah, New Yorker, 27 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1705, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ontological

• ontological argument

Rhymes for ontological

• analogical
• astrological
• biological
• christological
• chronological
• cosmological
• cytological
• dialogical
• ecological
• ethnological
• ethological
• geological