A Dictionary of Philosophy, Third Edition
. Principle attributed to William of Ockham, that ‘entities are not to be multiplied beyond necessity’ (not his own words), i.e. it is arbitrary to postulate the existence of things, or kinds of things, unless one has to.
More generally, one should choose the simplest hypothesis that will fit the facts. A stronger form claims that only what cannot be dispensed with is real and that to postulate other things is not only arbitrary but mistaken.
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