metaphysical

Metaphysical is an adjective with several related senses. In philosophy, it concerns metaphysics, the branch of inquiry into the fundamental nature of reality. The term derives from the Greek meta meaning beyond and physikē meaning physics. In everyday usage it can describe what lies beyond the physical world, including the supernatural or spiritual. In literary criticism, it denotes a mode of poetry characterized by intellectual conceits and argumentative wit.

Philosophically, metaphysics asks what exists, what it is like to be, and how objects and events relate across time and space. It covers ontology, causation, identity, substance, universals, and modality. Aristotle's Metaphysics is a foundational text; later thinkers from medieval to modern times modified or contested its claims. Some schools emphasize metaphysical naturalism or skepticism toward knowledge claims beyond possible experience.

Metaphysical poetry, a term applied by critics to roughly 17th-century English verse, includes poets such as John Donne and George Herbert. It is known for elaborate conceits, startling paradoxes, and a blending of love, religion, and philosophy, using intellectual argumentation to explore profound topics.

In contemporary usage, metaphysical often describes speculation about reality that exceeds empirical science, or the spiritual and occult dimensions sometimes linked to mysticism. The term remains a live but contested label in philosophy, literary studies, and theology.