diff --git a/core/includes/file.inc b/core/includes/file.inc
index eaff634..9117c54 100644
--- a/core/includes/file.inc
+++ b/core/includes/file.inc
@@ -576,16 +576,16 @@ function file_save_htaccess($directory, $private = TRUE) {
 /**
  * Loads file objects from the database.
  *
- * @param $fids
- *   An array of file IDs.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array|bool $fids
+ *   An array of file IDs, or FALSE to load all files.
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   (deprecated) An associative array of conditions on the {file_managed}
  *   table, where the keys are the database fields and the values are the
  *   values those fields must have. Instead, it is preferable to use
  *   EntityFieldQuery to retrieve a list of entity IDs loadable by
  *   this function.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of file objects, indexed by fid.
  *
  * @todo Remove $conditions in Drupal 8.
@@ -595,8 +595,8 @@ function file_save_htaccess($directory, $private = TRUE) {
  * @see entity_load()
  * @see EntityFieldQuery
  */
-function file_load_multiple($fids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
-  return entity_load('file', $fids, $conditions);
+function file_load_multiple($fids = array(), array $conditions = array()) {
+  return entity_load_multiple('file', $fids, $conditions);
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/core/modules/comment/comment.module b/core/modules/comment/comment.module
index 1a3580f..7f6169d 100644
--- a/core/modules/comment/comment.module
+++ b/core/modules/comment/comment.module
@@ -1500,19 +1500,19 @@ function comment_delete_multiple($cids) {
 /**
  * Loads comments from the database.
  *
- * @param $cids
- *   An array of comment IDs.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array|bool $cids
+ *   An array of comment IDs, or FALSE to load all comments.
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   (deprecated) An associative array of conditions on the {comments}
  *   table, where the keys are the database fields and the values are the
  *   values those fields must have. Instead, it is preferable to use
  *   EntityFieldQuery to retrieve a list of entity IDs loadable by
  *   this function.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   Whether to reset the internal static entity cache. Note that the static
  *   cache is disabled in comment_entity_info() by default.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of comment objects, indexed by comment ID.
  *
  * @todo Remove $conditions in Drupal 8.
@@ -1520,16 +1520,16 @@ function comment_delete_multiple($cids) {
  * @see entity_load()
  * @see EntityFieldQuery
  */
-function comment_load_multiple($cids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
-  return entity_load('comment', $cids, $conditions, $reset);
+function comment_load_multiple($cids = array(), array $conditions = array()) {
+  return entity_load_multiple('comment', $cids, $conditions);
 }
 
 /**
  * Loads the entire comment by comment ID.
  *
- * @param $cid
+ * @param int $cid
  *   The ID of the comment to be loaded.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   Whether to reset the internal static entity cache. Note that the static
  *   cache is disabled in comment_entity_info() by default.
  *
@@ -1537,8 +1537,7 @@ function comment_load_multiple($cids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset =
  *   The comment object.
  */
 function comment_load($cid, $reset = FALSE) {
-  $comment = comment_load_multiple(array($cid), array(), $reset);
-  return $comment ? $comment[$cid] : FALSE;
+  return entity_load('comment', $cid);
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/core/modules/entity/entity.api.php b/core/modules/entity/entity.api.php
index e983778..0f8f7b8 100644
--- a/core/modules/entity/entity.api.php
+++ b/core/modules/entity/entity.api.php
@@ -123,6 +123,7 @@
  *       display settings specific to the view mode.
  *
  * @see entity_load()
+ * @see entity_load_multiple()
  * @see hook_entity_info_alter()
  */
 function hook_entity_info() {
@@ -427,7 +428,7 @@ function hook_entity_view_alter(&$build, $type) {
  * Act on entities as they are being prepared for view.
  *
  * Allows you to operate on multiple entities as they are being prepared for
- * view. Only use this if attaching the data during the entity_load() phase
+ * view. Only use this if attaching the data during the entity loading phase
  * is not appropriate, for example when attaching other 'entity' style objects.
  *
  * @param $entities
diff --git a/core/modules/entity/entity.module b/core/modules/entity/entity.module
index fe9a6e5..2ab562a 100644
--- a/core/modules/entity/entity.module
+++ b/core/modules/entity/entity.module
@@ -191,7 +191,31 @@ function entity_create_stub_entity($entity_type, $ids) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Loads entities from the database.
+ * Loads an entity from the database.
+ *
+ * @see hook_entity_info()
+ * @see entity_load_multiple()
+ * @see DrupalEntityControllerInterface
+ * @see DrupalDefaultEntityController
+ * @see EntityFieldQuery
+ *
+ * @param string $entity_type
+ *   The entity type to load, e.g. node or user.
+ * @param int $id
+ *   The id of the entity to load.
+ * @param bool $reset
+ *   Whether to reset the internal cache for the requested entity type.
+ *
+ * @return object
+ *   The entity object, or FALSE if there is no entity with the given id.
+ */
+function entity_load($entity_type, $id, $reset = FALSE) {
+  $entities = entity_load_multiple($entity_type, array($id), array(), $reset);
+  return reset($entities);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Loads multiple entities from the database.
  *
  * This function should be used whenever you need to load more than one entity
  * from the database. The entities are loaded into memory and will not require
@@ -206,19 +230,19 @@ function entity_create_stub_entity($entity_type, $ids) {
  * DrupalDefaultEntityController class. See node_entity_info() and the
  * NodeController in node.module as an example.
  *
- * @param $entity_type
+ * @param string $entity_type
  *   The entity type to load, e.g. node or user.
- * @param $ids
+ * @param array|bool $ids
  *   An array of entity IDs, or FALSE to load all entities.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   (deprecated) An associative array of conditions on the base table, where
  *   the keys are the database fields and the values are the values those
  *   fields must have. Instead, it is preferable to use EntityFieldQuery to
  *   retrieve a list of entity IDs loadable by this function.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   Whether to reset the internal cache for the requested entity type.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of entity objects indexed by their ids.
  *
  * @todo Remove $conditions in Drupal 8.
@@ -228,7 +252,7 @@ function entity_create_stub_entity($entity_type, $ids) {
  * @see DrupalDefaultEntityController
  * @see EntityFieldQuery
  */
-function entity_load($entity_type, $ids = FALSE, $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
+function entity_load_multiple($entity_type, $ids = FALSE, $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
   if ($reset) {
     entity_get_controller($entity_type)->resetCache();
   }
diff --git a/core/modules/entity/entity.query.inc b/core/modules/entity/entity.query.inc
index fb7ebf0..22a9574 100644
--- a/core/modules/entity/entity.query.inc
+++ b/core/modules/entity/entity.query.inc
@@ -733,7 +733,7 @@ class EntityFieldQuery {
    *   @code
    *     $result = $query->execute();
    *     if (!empty($result[$my_type])) {
-   *       $entities = entity_load($my_type, array_keys($result[$my_type]));
+   *       $entities = entity_load_multiple($my_type, array_keys($result[$my_type]));
    *     }
    *   @endcode
    */
diff --git a/core/modules/entity/tests/entity_test.module b/core/modules/entity/tests/entity_test.module
index 6034b06..8dc702e 100644
--- a/core/modules/entity/tests/entity_test.module
+++ b/core/modules/entity/tests/entity_test.module
@@ -27,34 +27,33 @@ function entity_test_entity_info() {
 /**
  * Loads a test entity.
  *
- * @param $id
+ * @param int $id
  *   A test entity ID.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   A boolean indicating that the internal cache should be reset.
  *
  * @return Entity
  *   The loaded entity object, or FALSE if the entity cannot be loaded.
  */
 function entity_test_load($id, $reset = FALSE) {
-  $result = entity_load('entity_test', array($id), array(), $reset);
-  return reset($result);
+  return entity_load('entity_test', $id, $reset);
 }
 
 /**
  * Loads multiple test entities based on certain conditions.
  *
- * @param $ids
- *   An array of entity IDs.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array|bool $ids
+ *   An array of entity IDs, or FALSE to load all entities.
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   An array of conditions to match against the {entity} table.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   A boolean indicating that the internal cache should be reset.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of test entity objects, indexed by ID.
  */
 function entity_test_load_multiple($ids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
-  return entity_load('entity_test', $ids, $conditions, $reset);
+  return entity_load_multiple('entity_test', $ids, $conditions, $reset);
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/core/modules/file/file.module b/core/modules/file/file.module
index a2a5a80..0aef8de 100644
--- a/core/modules/file/file.module
+++ b/core/modules/file/file.module
@@ -163,8 +163,7 @@ function file_file_download($uri, $field_type = 'file') {
     foreach ($field_references as $entity_type => $type_references) {
       foreach ($type_references as $id => $reference) {
         // Try to load $entity and $field.
-        $entity = entity_load($entity_type, array($id));
-        $entity = reset($entity);
+        $entity = entity_load($entity_type, $id);
         $field = NULL;
         if ($entity) {
           // Load all fields for that entity.
diff --git a/core/modules/node/node.api.php b/core/modules/node/node.api.php
index 2324b47..b54f1ad 100644
--- a/core/modules/node/node.api.php
+++ b/core/modules/node/node.api.php
@@ -56,8 +56,8 @@
  *   - hook_entity_update() (all)
  *   - hook_node_access_records() (all)
  *   - hook_node_access_records_alter() (all)
- * - Loading a node (calling node_load(), node_load_multiple(), or
- *   entity_load() with $entity_type of 'node'):
+ * - Loading a node (calling node_load(), node_load_multiple(), entity_load()
+ *   or entity_load_multiple() with $entity_type of 'node'):
  *   - Node and revision information is read from database.
  *   - hook_load() (node-type-specific)
  *   - field_attach_load_revision() and field_attach_load()
diff --git a/core/modules/node/node.module b/core/modules/node/node.module
index be60e48..d64dcb9 100644
--- a/core/modules/node/node.module
+++ b/core/modules/node/node.module
@@ -913,40 +913,40 @@ function node_invoke($node, $hook, $a2 = NULL, $a3 = NULL, $a4 = NULL) {
  * from the database. Nodes are loaded into memory and will not require
  * database access if loaded again during the same page request.
  *
- * @param $nids
- *   (optional) An array of node IDs.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array|bool $nids
+ *   (optional) An array of node IDs, or FALSE to load all nodes.
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   (deprecated) An associative array of conditions on the {node}
  *   table, where the keys are the database fields and the values are the
  *   values those fields must have. Instead, it is preferable to use
  *   EntityFieldQuery to retrieve a list of entity IDs loadable by
  *   this function.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   (optional) Whether to reset the internal node_load() cache.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of node objects indexed by nid.
  *
  * @todo Remove $conditions in Drupal 8.
  *
- * @see entity_load()
+ * @see entity_load_multiple()
  * @see EntityFieldQuery
  */
-function node_load_multiple($nids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
-  return entity_load('node', $nids, $conditions, $reset);
+function node_load_multiple($nids = array(), array $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
+  return entity_load_multiple('node', $nids, $conditions, $reset);
 }
 
 /**
  * Loads a node object from the database.
  *
- * @param $nid
+ * @param int $nid
  *   (optional) The node ID.
- * @param $vid
+ * @param int $vid
  *   (optional) The revision ID.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   (optional) Whether to reset the node_load_multiple() cache.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return object
  *   A fully-populated node object, or FALSE if the node is not found.
  */
 function node_load($nid = NULL, $vid = NULL, $reset = FALSE) {
diff --git a/core/modules/node/node.test b/core/modules/node/node.test
index 1dbcaf3..ea9e224 100644
--- a/core/modules/node/node.test
+++ b/core/modules/node/node.test
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ class NodeLoadMultipleUnitTest extends NodeWebTestCase {
     $this->assertNoText($node4->title, t('Node title does not appear in the default listing.'));
 
     // Load nodes with only a condition. Nodes 3 and 4 will be loaded.
-    $nodes = node_load_multiple(NULL, array('promote' => 0));
+    $nodes = node_load_multiple(FALSE, array('promote' => 0));
     $this->assertEqual($node3->title, $nodes[$node3->nid]->title, t('Node was loaded.'));
     $this->assertEqual($node4->title, $nodes[$node4->nid]->title, t('Node was loaded.'));
     $count = count($nodes);
diff --git a/core/modules/simpletest/tests/menu.test b/core/modules/simpletest/tests/menu.test
index 8d1d651..0a10ec8 100644
--- a/core/modules/simpletest/tests/menu.test
+++ b/core/modules/simpletest/tests/menu.test
@@ -1321,7 +1321,7 @@ class MenuBreadcrumbTestCase extends MenuWebTestCase {
     // the breadcrumb based on taxonomy term hierarchy.
     $parent_tid = 0;
     foreach ($tags as $name => $null) {
-      $terms = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(NULL, array('name' => $name));
+      $terms = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(FALSE, array('name' => $name));
       $term = reset($terms);
       $tags[$name]['term'] = $term;
       if ($parent_tid) {
diff --git a/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module b/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module
index 47cde42..b6f6d81 100644
--- a/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module
+++ b/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module
@@ -1236,64 +1236,63 @@ class TaxonomyVocabularyController extends DrupalDefaultEntityController {
  * from the database. Terms are loaded into memory and will not require
  * database access if loaded again during the same page request.
  *
- * @see entity_load()
+ * @see entity_load_multiple()
  * @see EntityFieldQuery
  *
- * @param $tids
- *   An array of taxonomy term IDs.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array|bool $tids
+ *   An array of taxonomy term IDs, or FALSE to load all terms.
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   (deprecated) An associative array of conditions on the {taxonomy_term}
  *   table, where the keys are the database fields and the values are the
  *   values those fields must have. Instead, it is preferable to use
  *   EntityFieldQuery to retrieve a list of entity IDs loadable by
  *   this function.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of term objects, indexed by tid. When no results are found, an
  *   empty array is returned.
  *
  * @todo Remove $conditions in Drupal 8.
  */
-function taxonomy_term_load_multiple($tids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
-  return entity_load('taxonomy_term', $tids, $conditions);
+function taxonomy_term_load_multiple($tids = array(), array $conditions = array()) {
+  return entity_load_multiple('taxonomy_term', $tids, $conditions);
 }
 
 /**
- * Load multiple taxonomy vocabularies based on certain conditions.
+ * Loads multiple taxonomy vocabularies based on certain conditions.
  *
  * This function should be used whenever you need to load more than one
  * vocabulary from the database. Terms are loaded into memory and will not
  * require database access if loaded again during the same page request.
  *
- * @see entity_load()
+ * @see entity_load_multiple()
  *
- * @param $vids
+ * @param array|bool $vids
  *  An array of taxonomy vocabulary IDs, or FALSE to load all vocabularies.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array $conditions
  *  An array of conditions to add to the query.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *  An array of vocabulary objects, indexed by vid.
  */
-function taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple($vids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
-  return entity_load('taxonomy_vocabulary', $vids, $conditions);
+function taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple($vids = array(), array $conditions = array()) {
+  return entity_load_multiple('taxonomy_vocabulary', $vids, $conditions);
 }
 
 /**
  * Return the vocabulary object matching a vocabulary ID.
  *
- * @param $vid
+ * @param int $vid
  *   The vocabulary's ID.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return object
  *   The vocabulary object with all of its metadata, if exists, FALSE otherwise.
  *   Results are statically cached.
  *
  * @see taxonomy_vocabulary_machine_name_load()
  */
 function taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid) {
-  $vocabularies = taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(array($vid));
-  return reset($vocabularies);
+  return entity_load('taxonomy_vocabulary', $vid);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -1309,8 +1308,8 @@ function taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid) {
  * @see taxonomy_vocabulary_load()
  */
 function taxonomy_vocabulary_machine_name_load($name) {
-  $vocabularies = taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(NULL, array('machine_name' => $name));
-  return reset($vocabularies);
+  $result = entity_load_multiple('taxonomy_vocabulary', FALSE, array('machine_name' => $name));
+  return reset($result);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -1326,8 +1325,7 @@ function taxonomy_term_load($tid) {
   if (!is_numeric($tid)) {
     return FALSE;
   }
-  $term = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(array($tid), array());
-  return $term ? $term[$tid] : FALSE;
+  return entity_load('taxonomy_term', $tid);
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test b/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test
index de50f2a..96242d7 100644
--- a/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test
+++ b/core/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test
@@ -1347,7 +1347,7 @@ class TaxonomyLoadMultipleUnitTest extends TaxonomyWebTestCase {
       $this->createTerm($vocabulary);
     }
     // Load the terms from the vocabulary.
-    $terms = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(NULL, array('vid' => $vocabulary->vid));
+    $terms = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(FALSE, array('vid' => $vocabulary->vid));
     $count = count($terms);
     $this->assertTrue($count == 5, t('Correct number of terms were loaded. !count terms.', array('!count' => $count)));
 
@@ -1367,7 +1367,7 @@ class TaxonomyLoadMultipleUnitTest extends TaxonomyWebTestCase {
     $this->assertFalse($deleted_term);
 
     // Load terms from the vocabulary by vid.
-    $terms4 = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(NULL, array('vid' => $vocabulary->vid));
+    $terms4 = taxonomy_term_load_multiple(FALSE, array('vid' => $vocabulary->vid));
     $this->assertTrue(count($terms4 == 4), t('Correct number of terms were loaded.'));
     $this->assertFalse(isset($terms4[$deleted->tid]));
 
diff --git a/core/modules/user/user.module b/core/modules/user/user.module
index 865f17b..2063630 100644
--- a/core/modules/user/user.module
+++ b/core/modules/user/user.module
@@ -265,28 +265,28 @@ function user_external_load($authname) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Load multiple users based on certain conditions.
+ * Loads multiple users based on certain conditions.
  *
  * This function should be used whenever you need to load more than one user
  * from the database. Users are loaded into memory and will not require
  * database access if loaded again during the same page request.
  *
- * @param $uids
- *   An array of user IDs.
- * @param $conditions
+ * @param array|bool $uids
+ *   An array of user IDs, or FALSE to load all users.
+ * @param array $conditions
  *   (deprecated) An associative array of conditions on the {users}
  *   table, where the keys are the database fields and the values are the
  *   values those fields must have. Instead, it is preferable to use
  *   EntityFieldQuery to retrieve a list of entity IDs loadable by
  *   this function.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   A boolean indicating that the internal cache should be reset. Use this if
  *   loading a user object which has been altered during the page request.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return array
  *   An array of user objects, indexed by uid.
  *
- * @see entity_load()
+ * @see entity_load_multiple()
  * @see user_load()
  * @see user_load_by_mail()
  * @see user_load_by_name()
@@ -294,8 +294,8 @@ function user_external_load($authname) {
  *
  * @todo Remove $conditions in Drupal 8.
  */
-function user_load_multiple($uids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
-  return entity_load('user', $uids, $conditions, $reset);
+function user_load_multiple($uids = array(), array $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
+  return entity_load_multiple('user', $uids, $conditions, $reset);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -310,52 +310,51 @@ function user_load_multiple($uids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FAL
  * @link http://drupal.org/node/218104 Safely impersonating another user @endlink
  * for more information.
  *
- * @param $uid
+ * @param int $uid
  *   Integer specifying the user ID to load.
- * @param $reset
+ * @param bool $reset
  *   TRUE to reset the internal cache and load from the database; FALSE
  *   (default) to load from the internal cache, if set.
  *
- * @return
+ * @return object
  *   A fully-loaded user object upon successful user load, or FALSE if the user
  *   cannot be loaded.
  *
  * @see user_load_multiple()
  */
 function user_load($uid, $reset = FALSE) {
-  $users = user_load_multiple(array($uid), array(), $reset);
-  return reset($users);
+  return entity_load('user', $uid, $reset);
 }
 
 /**
- * Fetch a user object by email address.
+ * Fetches a user object by email address.
  *
- * @param $mail
+ * @param string $mail
  *   String with the account's e-mail address.
- * @return
+ * @return object|bool
  *   A fully-loaded $user object upon successful user load or FALSE if user
  *   cannot be loaded.
  *
  * @see user_load_multiple()
  */
 function user_load_by_mail($mail) {
-  $users = user_load_multiple(array(), array('mail' => $mail));
+  $users = entity_load_multiple('user', FALSE, array('mail' => $mail));
   return reset($users);
 }
 
 /**
- * Fetch a user object by account name.
+ * Fetches a user object by account name.
  *
- * @param $name
+ * @param string $name
  *   String with the account's user name.
- * @return
+ * @return object|bool
  *   A fully-loaded $user object upon successful user load or FALSE if user
  *   cannot be loaded.
  *
  * @see user_load_multiple()
  */
 function user_load_by_name($name) {
-  $users = user_load_multiple(array(), array('name' => $name));
+  $users = entity_load_multiple('user', FALSE, array('name' => $name));
   return reset($users);
 }