The ontology of words: Realism, nominalism, and eliminativism

Miller, J.T.M.

Abstract

What are words? What makes two token words tokens of the same word‐type? Are words abstract entities, or are they (merely) collections of tokens? The ontology of words tries to provide answers to these, and related questions. This article provides an overview of some of the most prominent views proposed in the literature, with a particular focus on the debate between type‐realist, nominalist, and eliminativist ontologies of words.

Citation

Miller, J. (2020). The ontology of words: Realism, nominalism, and eliminativism. Philosophy Compass, 15(7), Article e12691. https://doi.org/10.1111/phc3.12691

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 31, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Jul 30, 2020
• Publication Date: 2020-07
• Deposit Date: Jul 30, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 31, 2020
• Journal: Philosophy Compass
• Electronic ISSN: 1747-9991
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 7
• Article Number: e12691
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/phc3.12691
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1295616