is a lexical database based on a theory of meaning called Frame Semantics
Frame Semantics
relates linguistic semantics to encyclopedic knowledge
the basic idea is that one cannot understand the meaning of a single word without access to all the essential knowledge that relates to that word
for example, one would not be able to understand the word “sell” without knowing anything about the situation of commercial transfer, which also involves:
a seller
a buyer
goods
money
the relation between the money and the goods
the relations between the seller and the goods and the money
the relation between the buyer and the goods and the money
and so on …
thus, a word activates, or evokes, a frame of semantic knowledge relating to the specific concept to which it refers (or highlights, in frame semantic terminology)