Business Metadata: Capturing Enterprise Knowledge

Chapter 4 Business Metadata, Communication, and Search

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8. Synonyms: Terms that mean nearly the same thing as the term being

defined. Controlled vocabularies often handle synonyms using a synonym

ring, defining one term as the Preferred Term (PT). The language “USE

FOR” is indicated in a controlled vocabulary when preferred terms are

used. Example: Suppose Division and Department mean the same thing

in an organization; they are synonyms, but suppose Division was the

Preferred Term. When you look up Department, the glossary will state

“Division: USE FOR Department.” Glossaries, indexes, and search engines

display synonyms in the “SEE…” section ...