Relating to the branch of philosophy that deals with the fundamental nature of reality, existence, and being. It can also refer to things that are beyond the physical or material world, often spiritual or abstract.
From Greek meta (beyond, after) + physika (physical things). Originally, it referred to Aristotle's works that came 'after' his Physics in the traditional ordering of his books. The meaning evolved to describe philosophical inquiry into what lies beyond or behind physical reality.
Think META-PHYSICAL - beyond the physical! It's like asking questions that go beyond what you can see and touch: What is reality really? What does it mean to exist? Why is there something rather than nothing? If physics studies the physical world, metaphysics studies what's beyond or behind it.
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