nominalism
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.
nominalistic
-
a word derived from
nominalism.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I call this the nominalistic as opposed to the realistic method of Comparative Mythology, and it is the former only that concerns the student of the Science of Language.
From Chips From A German Workshop, Vol. V. Miscellaneous Later Essays by F. Max (Friedrich Max) Müller
Blood parodizes this demand in true nominalistic fashion.
From Memories and Studies by Henry James
It is not strange, then, that the ardent realism of William of Champeaux should have been outraged by the nominalistic logic of Abélard.
From Historia Calamitatum by Peter Abelard
Kant's Critique of Pure Reason accomplished what the nominalistic schoolmen failed to achieve: it showed the impossibility of establishing by means of logic the dogma of God or any absolute conception of the universe.
From Shelburne Essays, Third Series by Paul Elmer More
This “conciliar theory,” propounded by Conrad of Gelnhausen and championed by the great Parisian teachers Pierre d’Ailly and Gerson, proceeded from the nominalistic axiom that the whole is greater than its part.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 6 "Coucy-le-Château" to "Crocodile" by Various
