It can be said that domain-driven design’s bounded contexts are based on the lexico‐ graphical notion of semantic domains. A semantic domain is defined as an area of meaning and the words used to talk about it. For example, the words monitor, port, and processor have different meanings in the software and hardware engineering semantic domains.

A rather peculiar example of different semantic domains is the meaning of the word

tomato.

According to the botanic definition, a fruit is the plant’s way of spreading its seeds. A fruit should grow from the plant’s flower, and bear at least one seed. A vegetable, on the other hand, is a general term encompassing all other edible parts of a plant: roots, stems, and leaves. Based on this definition, the tomato is a fruit.

That definition, however, is of little use in the context of the culinary arts. In this con‐ text, fruits and vegetables are defined based on their flavor profiles. A fruit has a soft texture, is either sweet or sour, and can be enjoyed in its raw form, whereas a vegeta‐ ble has a tougher texture, tastes blander, and often requires cooking. According to this definition, the tomato is a vegetable.

Hence, in the bounded context of botany, the tomato is a fruit, while in the bounded context of the culinary arts, it’s a vegetable. But that’s not all.

In 1883 the United States established a 10% tax on imported vegetables, but not fruits. The botanic definition of the tomato as a fruit allowed the importation of tomatoes to the United States without paying the import tax. To close the loophole, in 1893 the United States Supreme Court made the decision to classify the tomato as a vegetable. Therefore, in the bounded context of taxation, the tomato is a vegetable.

Furthermore, as my friend Romeu Moura says, in the bounded context of theatrical performances, the tomato is a feedback mechanism.