The other solution is that of nominalism. Here the thesis is that universals such as the ideas or forms of Plato are unnecessary in an explanation of language, thought and the world. Only single individuals are real, but they can be grouped together by a human observer through their similarities.
The alternative is nominalism. In this view, universals like Plato's ideas or forms are not essential in explaining language, thought, and reality. Only individual entities exist; however, humans can categorize them based on their similarities.