phenomenology

American  

[fi-nom-uh-nol-uh-jee] / fɪˌnɒm əˈnɒl ə dʒi /

noun

Philosophy.

1. the study of phenomena.

2. the system of Husserl and his followers stressing the description of phenomena.

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phenomenology British  

/ fɪˌnɒmɪˈnɒlədʒɪ, fɪˌnɒmɪnəˈlɒdʒɪkəl /

noun

1. the movement founded by Husserl that concentrates on the detailed description of conscious experience, without recourse to explanation, metaphysical assumptions, and traditional philosophical questions

2. the science of phenomena as opposed to the science of being

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Other Word Forms

• phenomenologic adjective
• phenomenological adjective
• phenomenologically adverb
• phenomenologist noun

Etymology

Origin of phenomenology

First recorded in 1790–1800; phenomen(on) + -o- + -logy

Example Sentences

But their phenomenology, he concludes, is nothing like our consciousness.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 15, 2026

“Spiritually, if you look at this kind of thing, the reality is that it was never about the phenomenology of a hole,” Mr. Dumaine said in an interview.

From New York Times • Jan. 19, 2024

In IIT’s understanding of consciousness, the painter brilliantly renders the phenomenology of the natural world onto a two-dimensional canvas.

From Scientific American • Sep. 8, 2023

"Stellar phenomenology is extremely rich, and no two stars are the same if looked at closely enough."

From Reuters • Jul. 21, 2023

All along existentialism and phenomenology had been ours 'and many nurses' "what" and "how."

From Humanistic Nursing by Paterson, Josephine G.