<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article does not cite any sources . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (October 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article does not cite any sources . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (October 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> In philosophy, the term means to an end refers to any action (the means) carried out for the sole purpose of achieving something else (an end). It can be thought of as a metaphysical distinction, as no empirical information differentiates actions that are means to ends from those that are not--that are "ends in themselves ." It has been incurred that all actions are means to other ends; this is relevant when considering the meaning of life . </P>

Means to an end and not an end in itself