terminologys

Terminology is the set of terms used to describe a subject field or domain, together with their definitions and interrelationships. It can also refer to the discipline that studies terms and naming. The term is often used to describe both the vocabulary of a domain and the methodological study of naming and meaning.

Terminologies usually include terms (concept labels), definitions, preferred terms, synonyms, scope notes, and relationships such as broader or narrower terms and part-whole associations. They are frequently organized into structured resources such as glossaries, controlled vocabularies, taxonomies, thesauri, or ontologies to support clear communication and data interoperability.

Standardization is a key aim of terminology work. Professional bodies and standards organizations develop and maintain terminologies to reduce ambiguity, enable reliable information exchange, and support indexing, searching, and interoperability across systems. In medicine, for example, terminologies such as SNOMED CT, ICD, and MeSH are used to describe diseases, procedures, and concepts. In law, engineering, and information technology, domain-specific terminologies and standardized termbases play similar roles.

Terminology differs from jargon and ordinary vocabulary. Jargon refers to specialized language that may be opaque to outsiders, while terminology emphasizes systematic naming and precise definitions. Glossaries are collections of terms with definitions, but terminology encompasses the broader structure, relationships, and governance of naming within a field.

The standard plural form of the word is terminologies; terminologys is generally considered a misspelling. The study of terminology intersects with ontology, knowledge organization, and information retrieval, reflecting its role in organizing knowledge and supporting communication.