Overview
ISO 704:2022 - Terminology work - Principles and methods defines the core principles and methods for preparing, compiling and managing terminologies both inside and outside formal standardization. The standard explains the links between objects, concepts, definitions and designations, and sets out general principles for the formation of terms and proper names and the writing of definitions. Applicable across scientific, technological, industrial, legal, administrative and other knowledge domains, ISO 704:2022 supports unambiguous communication and consistent terminology management.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Concepts and reality vs. language: relationships between real-world objects and the linguistic signs used to represent them.
- Concept analysis: individual vs. general concepts, characteristics, intension (attributes) and extension (instances), essential vs. non‑essential characteristics.
- Concept relations: hierarchical relations (hyponymy/superordination), associative relations and their notation - including updates aligned to ISO 24156-1 concept models.
- Concept systems: development, visualization and structuring of concept networks and taxonomies.
- Definitions: intensional (genus + differentia) and extensional definitions, principles for writing clear, non‑circular definitions, and handling deficient definitions.
- Designations: terms, appellations, proper names and symbols; term formation methods and principles.
- Relations between designations and concepts: mononymy/monosemy, synonymy, equivalence, antonymy, polysemy/homonymy, harmonization and acceptability rating.
- Supplementary information: use of examples, notes, encyclopaedic descriptions and sources to complement definitions.
- Normative scope: ISO 704:2022 focuses on principles and methods and does not stipulate presentation formats for terminological entries in International Standards (see ISO 10241-1 and ISO 10241-2).
Practical applications and users
Who benefits:
- Terminologists and lexicographers building glossaries and termbases.
- Standards developers and technical writers ensuring consistent terminology across documents.
- Translators and localization specialists needing clear concept-to-term mappings.
- Knowledge engineers and ontology designers modeling concept systems and taxonomies.
- Information managers and legal/administrative bodies aiming for unambiguous policy and technical communication.
How it’s used:
- Create multilingual glossaries and termbanks aligned with ISO principles.
- Design consistent terminology workflows for standards development or product documentation.
- Guide term formation and harmonization during mergers, standards updates or regulatory drafting.
- Support knowledge modelling and semantic interoperability in information systems.
Related standards
- ISO 1087 (terminology vocabulary) - conceptual definitions and basic terms.
- ISO 24156-1 - concept models referenced in the 2022 revision.
- ISO 10241-1 / ISO 10241-2 - presentation rules for terminological entries in International Standards.
Keywords: ISO 704:2022, terminology work, term formation, definitions, concept systems, terminology standard, terminology management, standards development.
