Glossary
What Is an Entity
An entity is a person, organization, or concept identified by a fixed @id so AI can merge the subject across pages.
- Author
- Xingge
- Published
- 2026-11-09
- Updated
- 2026-11-09
- Level
- L2 Reproducible
- Version
- 1.0
Term details
- Name
- What Is an Entity
- Type
- Glossary
- ID
- entity-en
What Is an Entity
An entity is a person, organization, or concept identified by a fixed @id, so that AI can merge the same subject across pages. Each entity keeps a single authoritative @id, and other pages only reference it rather than redefining fields.
Definition
This site's working definition: an entity is a subject described by a stable identifier plus a minimal set of required fields; the identifier never changes once set, and fields are maintained only on the entity home page.
Cross-page merging depends on two things: an identical identifier and an identical name spelling. If either differs, the pages may be read as two subjects.
Boundaries: what it is easily confused with
| Easily confused concept | Key difference |
|---|---|
| Keyword | Keywords affect retrieval; entities affect perception merging |
| Brand name | A brand name is a label; an entity needs an identifier and fields |
| canonical | canonical merges URLs; an entity merges subjects |
Common misconceptions
- Giving the same person different titles on different pages. Title differences are read as different subjects.
- Rewriting complete fields on every page. Scattered field maintenance invites version conflicts.
- Using a client organization identifier as this site's publisher. Mixing subjects causes wording errors.
Basis and verification
This definition is this site's working definition, marked L2. This site has exactly one fixed @id for its author and one for its publisher; for the exact markup, see the entity consistency method page in the method index.
Review cycle: 180 days.
Related sections: glossary index, method index, metric index, editorial policy.