schema

American  

[skee-muh] / ˈski mə /

noun

plural

schemata, schemas

1. a diagram, plan, or scheme.

   Synonyms:

   model, framework, outline

2. an underlying organizational pattern or structure; conceptual framework.

   A schema provides the basis by which someone relates to the events they experience.

3. (in Kantian epistemology) a concept, similar to a universal but limited to phenomenal knowledge, by which an object of knowledge or an idea of pure reason may be apprehended.

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schema British  

/ ˈskiːmə /

noun

1. a plan, diagram, or scheme

2. (in the philosophy of Kant) a rule or principle that enables the understanding to apply its categories and unify experience

   universal succession is the schema of causality

3. psychol a mental model of aspects of the world or of the self that is structured in such a way as to facilitate the processes of cognition and perception

4. logic an expression using metavariables that may be replaced by object language expressions to yield a well-formed formula. Thus A = A is an axiom schema for identity, representing the infinite number of axioms, x = x, y = y, z = z, etc

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Etymology

Origin of schema

First recorded in 1790–1800; from Greek schêma “form, shape, appearance”

Example Sentences

In the more pessimistic schema, Tesla succumbs to competition and margin pressure, the market disregards Optimus in valuations and Robotaxi has slower growth expected.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 8, 2025

Can we apply the same schema to what’s happening in democratic politics?

From Slate • Jul. 14, 2025

Chess players remember the location of pieces on the board using schema, a way of organizing new information in the brain.

From Science Daily • May 1, 2024

Humans are drawn to animals with babylike features, called “baby schema ” in psychology: big eyes, big heads and soft bodies.

From Scientific American • Jun. 20, 2023

But then who was the Jack that loved and buried Sophie; was he just another version in the schema, or the true soul, or could he have been both?

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee