The notion of “science” in the feminine singular is, by its etymology, rather complex and polysemous.
First of all, is it science? Or the sciences?
Are we talking about science in the common sense, the mathematical sciences? Or are we talking about science in the broad etymological sense of “knowledge” (in Latin)?
Considering this etymology, philosophy would be a science, or, in other words, a sum of knowledge that an individual possesses or can acquire through study, reflection or experience.
Science also means the exact knowledge that one has of something.
Science, in the sense most commonly used, is defined as the system of rational or experimental knowledge about a given object. In a general way, we will say that science is the whole of the knowledge acquired by the study.
In certain contexts, science can take on a metaphysical aspect and become supernatural in that it comes from God through inspiration.
Finally, science can designate what we know because we have learned it, what we hold to be true in the broadest sense: it is then the whole of knowledge, of studies of universal value, characterized by a given object (field) and method, and based on verifiable objective relations.
Let us retain to summarize the definition of Michel Blay, for whom science is thus:
“The clear and certain knowledge of something, based either on obvious principles and demonstrations, or on experimental reasoning, or on the analysis of societies and human facts.”
Synonyms for science:
knowledge, ability, skill, art, proficiency, instruction, experience, knowledge, background, skill, erudition, secrecy, wisdom, depth, knowledge, culture, discipline, omniscience, technique, truth, study
You may also like:
→ General Knowledge: science
