phenomenology

phe·nom·e·nol·o·gy

noun \fi-ˌnä-mə-ˈnä-lə-jē\

plural phe·nom·e·nol·o·gies

Definition of PHENOMENOLOGY

1

: the study of the development of human consciousness and self-awareness as a preface to or a part of philosophy

2

a (1) : a philosophical movement that describes the formal structure of the objects of awareness and of awareness itself in abstraction from any claims concerning existence (2) : the typological classification of a class of phenomena <the phenomenology of religion> b : an analysis produced by phenomenological investigation

— phe·nom·e·nol·o·gist \-jist\ noun

Origin of PHENOMENOLOGY

German Phänomenologie, from Phänomenon phenomenon + -logie -logy

First Known Use: circa 1797

Other Philosophy Terms

dialectic, dualism, epistemology, existentialism, metaphysics, ontology, sequitur, solipsism, transcendentalism

Rhymes with PHENOMENOLOGY

bacteriology, endocrinology, epistemology, Gestalt psychology, kinesiology, metapsychology, microbiology, nanotechnology, neurobiology, neuropsychology, paleontology, parasitology