n.
Pronunciation: än- ' tä-l ə -j ē
Function: noun
Etymology: New Latin ontologia, from ont- + -logia -logy
Date: circa 1721
1 : a branch of metaphysics concerned with the nature and relations of being
2 : a particular theory about the nature of being or the kinds of things that have existence
– on · tol · o · gist \ -jist \ noun