diff --git includes/common.inc includes/common.inc
index 5011ddf..a777f37 100644
--- includes/common.inc
+++ includes/common.inc
@@ -4566,3 +4566,91 @@ function _drupal_flush_css_js() {
   }
   variable_set('css_js_query_string', $new_character . substr($string_history, 0, 19));
 }
+
+/**
+ * Get the entity info array of an entity type.
+ *
+ * @see hook_entity_info()
+ * @see hook_entity_info_alter()
+ *
+ * @param $entity_type
+ *   The entity type, e.g. node, for which the info shall be returned, or NULL
+ *   to return an array with info about all types.
+ */
+function drupal_get_entity_info($entity_type = NULL) {
+  // We statically cache the information returned by hook_entity_info().
+  $entity_info = &drupal_static(__FUNCTION__, array());
+
+  if (empty($entity_info)) {
+    if ($cache = cache_get('entity_info')) {
+      $entity_info = $cache->data;
+    }
+    else {
+      $entity_info = module_invoke_all('entity_info');
+      // Merge in default values.
+      foreach ($entity_info as $name => $data) {
+        $entity_info[$name] += array(
+          'fieldable' => FALSE,
+          'loader class' => 'DrupalDefaultEntityLoader',
+          'static cache' => TRUE,
+        );
+      }
+      // Let other modules alter the entity info.
+      drupal_alter('entity_info', $entity_info);
+      cache_set('entity_info', $entity_info);
+    }
+  }
+
+  return empty($entity_type) ? $entity_info : $entity_info[$entity_type];
+}
+
+/**
+ * Load 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
+ * database access if loaded again during the same page request.
+ *
+ * The actual loading is done through a class that has to implement the
+ * DrupalEntityLoader interface. By default, DrupalDefaultEntityLoader is used.
+ * Entitiy types can specify that a different class should be used by setting
+ * the 'loader class' key in hook_entity_info(). These classes can either
+ * implement the DrupalEntityLoader interface, or, most commonly, extend the
+ * DrupalDefaultEntityLoader class. See node_entity_info() and the class
+ * NodeLoader in node.module as an example.
+ *
+ * @see hook_entity_info()
+ * @see DrupalEntityLoader
+ * @see DrupalDefaultEntityLoader
+ *
+ * @param $entity_type
+ *   The entity type to load, e.g. node or user.
+ * @param $ids
+ *   An array of entity IDs, or FALSE to load all entities.
+ * @param $conditions
+ *   An array of conditions on the entity base table in the form 'field' => $value.
+ * @param $reset
+ *   Whether to reset the internal cache for the requested entity type.
+ *
+ * @return
+ *   An array of entity objects indexed by their ids.
+ */
+function drupal_load_multiple($entity_type, $ids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
+  if ($reset) {
+    drupal_get_entity_loader($entity_type)->resetCache();
+  }
+  return drupal_get_entity_loader($entity_type)->loadMultiple($ids, $conditions);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get the entity loader class for an entity type.
+ */
+function drupal_get_entity_loader($entity_type) {
+  $loaders = &drupal_static(__FUNCTION__, array());
+  if (!isset($loaders[$entity_type])) {
+    $type_info = drupal_get_entity_info($entity_type);
+    $class = $type_info['loader class'];
+    $loaders[$entity_type] = new $class($entity_type);
+  }
+  return $loaders[$entity_type];
+}
diff --git includes/entity.inc includes/entity.inc
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0f25a7d
--- /dev/null
+++ includes/entity.inc
@@ -0,0 +1,282 @@
+<?php
+/**
+ * Interface for entity loader classes.
+ *
+ * All entity loader classes specified via the 'loader class' key returned by
+ * hook_entity_info() or hook_entity_info_alter() have to implement this interface.
+ *
+ * Most simple, SQL-based entity loaders will do better by extending
+ * DrupalDefaultEntityLoader instead of implementing this interface directly.
+ */
+interface DrupalEntityLoaderInterface {
+  /**
+   * Constructor.
+   *
+   * @param $entity_type
+   *   The entity type for which the instance is created.
+   */
+  public function __construct($entity_type);
+
+  /**
+   * Reset the internal, static entity cache.
+   */
+  public function resetCache();
+
+  /**
+   * Load one or more entities.
+   *
+   * @param $ids
+   *   An array of entity IDs, or FALSE to load all entities.
+   * @param $conditions
+   *   An array of conditions on the entity base table in the form 'field' => $value.
+   *
+   * @return
+   *   An array of entity objects indexed by their ids.
+   */
+  public function loadMultiple($ids = array(), $conditions = array());
+}
+
+/**
+ * Default implementation of DrupalEntityLoaderInterface.
+ *
+ * This class can be used as-is by most simple entity types. Entity types
+ * requiring special handling can extend the class.
+ */
+class DrupalDefaultEntityLoader implements DrupalEntityLoaderInterface {
+
+  protected $entity_cache;
+  protected $entity_type;
+  protected $entity_info;
+  protected $hook_load_arguments;
+  protected $id_key;
+  protected $revision_key;
+  protected $revision_table;
+  protected $query;
+
+  /**
+   * Constructor. Set basic variables.
+   */
+  public function __construct($entity_type) {
+    $this->entity_type = $entity_type;
+    $this->entity_info = drupal_get_entity_info($entity_type);
+    $this->entity_cache = array();
+    $this->hook_load_arguments = array();
+
+    $this->id_key = $this->entity_info['id key'];
+
+    // Check if the entity type supports revisions.
+    if (isset($this->entity_info['revision key'])) {
+      $this->revision_key = $this->entity_info['revision key'];
+      $this->revision_table = $this->entity_info['revision table'];
+    }
+    else {
+      $this->revision_key = FALSE;
+    }
+
+    // Check if the entity type supports static caching of loaded entities.
+    $this->cache = !empty($this->entity_info['static cache']);
+  }
+
+  public function resetCache() {
+    $this->entity_cache = array();
+  }
+
+  public function loadMultiple($ids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
+    $this->ids = $ids;
+    $this->conditions = $conditions;
+
+    $entities = array();
+
+    // Revisions are not statically cached, and require a different query to
+    // other conditions, so separate the revision id into its own variable.
+    if ($this->revision_key && isset($this->conditions[$this->revision_key])) {
+      $this->revision_id = $this->conditions[$this->revision_key];
+      unset($this->conditions[$this->revision_key]);
+    }
+    else {
+      $this->revision_id = FALSE;
+    }
+
+
+    // Create a new variable which is either a prepared version of the $ids
+    // array for later comparison with the entity cache, or FALSE if no $ids were
+    // passed. The $ids array is reduced as items are loaded from cache, and we
+    // need to know if it's empty for this reason to avoid querying the database
+    // when all requested entities are loaded from cache.
+    $passed_ids = !empty($this->ids) ? array_flip($this->ids) : FALSE;
+    // Try to load entities from the static cache, if the entity type supports
+    // static caching.
+    if ($this->cache) {
+      $entities += $this->cacheGet($this->ids, $this->conditions);
+      // If any entities were loaded, remove them from the $ids still to load.
+      if ($passed_ids) {
+        $this->ids = array_keys(array_diff_key($passed_ids, $entities));
+      }
+    }
+
+    // Load any remaining entities from the database. This is the case if $ids
+    // is set to FALSE (so we load all entities), if there are any ids left to
+    // load, if loading a revision, or if $conditions was passed without $ids.
+    if ($this->ids === FALSE || $this->ids || $this->revision_id || ($this->conditions && !$passed_ids)) {
+      // Build the query.
+      $this->buildQuery();
+      $queried_entities = $this->query
+        ->execute()
+        ->fetchAllAssoc($this->id_key);
+    }
+
+    // Pass all entities loaded from the database through $this->attachLoad(),
+    // which attaches fields (if supported by the entity type) and calls the
+    // entity type specific load callback.
+    if (!empty($queried_entities)) {
+      $this->attachLoad($queried_entities);
+      $entities += $queried_entities;
+    }
+
+    if ($this->cache) {
+      // Add entities to the cache if we're not loading a revision.
+      if (!empty($queried_entities) && !$this->revision_id) {
+        $this->cacheSet($queried_entities);
+      }
+      // Ensure that the returned array is ordered the same as the original $ids
+      // array if this was passed in and remove any invalid ids.
+      if ($passed_ids) {
+        // Remove any invalid ids from the array.
+        $passed_ids = array_intersect_key($passed_ids, $entities);
+        foreach ($entities as $entity) {
+          $passed_ids[$entity->{$this->id_key}] = $entity;
+        }
+        $entities = $passed_ids;
+      }
+    }
+
+    return $entities;
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Build the query to load the entity.
+   *
+   * This has full revision support. For entities requiring special queries,
+   * the class can be extendend, and the default query can be constructed by
+   * calling parent::buildQuery(). See NodeLoader::buildQuery() for an example.
+   */
+  protected function buildQuery() {
+    $this->query = db_select($this->entity_info['base table'], 'base');
+
+    $this->query->addTag($this->entity_type . '_load_multiple');
+
+    if ($this->revision_id) {
+      $this->query->join($this->revision_table, 'revision', "revision.{$this->id_key} = base.{$this->id_key} AND revision.{$this->revision_key} = :revision_id", array(':revision_id' => $this->revision_id));
+    }
+    elseif ($this->revision_key) {
+      $this->query->join($this->revision_table, 'revision', "revision.{$this->revision_key} = base.{$this->revision_key}");
+    }
+
+    // Add fields from the {entity} table.
+    $entity_fields = drupal_schema_fields_sql($this->entity_info['base table']);
+
+    if ($this->revision_key) {
+      // Add all fields from the {entity_revision} table.
+      $entity_revision_fields = drupal_schema_fields_sql($this->revision_table);
+      // The id field is provided by entity, so remove it.
+      unset($entity_revision_fields[$this->id_key]);
+
+      // Change timestamp to revision_timestamp before adding it to the query.
+      // TODO: This is node specific and has to be moved into NodeLoader.
+      unset($entity_revision_fields['timestamp']);
+      $this->query->addField('revision', 'timestamp', 'revision_timestamp');
+
+      // Remove all fields from the base table that are also fields by the same
+      // name in the revision table.
+      $entity_field_keys = array_flip($entity_fields);
+      foreach ($entity_revision_fields as $key => $name) {
+        if (isset($entity_field_keys[$name])) {
+          unset($entity_fields[$entity_field_keys[$name]]);
+        }
+      }
+      $this->query->fields('revision', $entity_revision_fields);
+    }
+
+    $this->query->fields('base', $entity_fields);
+
+    if ($this->ids) {
+      $this->query->condition("base.{$this->id_key}", $this->ids, 'IN');
+    }
+    if ($this->conditions) {
+      foreach ($this->conditions as $field => $value) {
+        $this->query->condition('base.' . $field, $value);
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Attach data to entities upon loading.
+   *
+   * This will attach fields, if the entity is fieldable. It also calls
+   * hook_ENTITY_TYPE_load() on the loaded entities. If your hook_ENTITY_TYPE_load()
+   * expects special parameters apart from the queried entities, you can set
+   * $this->hook_load_arguments prior to calling the method.
+   * See NodeLoader::attachLoad() for an example.
+   */
+  protected function attachLoad(&$queried_entities) {
+    // Attach fields.
+    if ($this->entity_info['fieldable']) {
+      if ($this->revision_id) {
+        field_attach_load_revision($this->entity_type, $queried_entities);
+      }
+      else {
+        field_attach_load($this->entity_type, $queried_entities);
+      }
+    }
+
+    // Call hook_ENTITY_TYPE_load(). The first argument for hook_TYPE_load() are
+    // always the queried entities, followed by additional arguments set in
+    // $this->hook_load_arguments.
+    $args = array_merge(array($queried_entities), $this->hook_load_arguments);
+    foreach (module_implements($this->entity_type . '_load') as $module) {
+      call_user_func_array($module . '_' . $this->entity_type . '_load', $args);
+    }
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Get entities from the static cache.
+   *
+   * @param $ids
+   *   If not empty, return entities that match these IDs.
+   * @param $conditions
+   *   If set, return entities that match all of these conditions.
+   */
+  protected function cacheGet($ids, $conditions = array()) {
+    $entities = array();
+    // Load any available entities from the internal cache.
+    if (!empty($this->entity_cache) && !$this->revision_id) {
+      if ($ids) {
+        $entities += array_intersect_key($this->entity_cache, array_flip($ids));
+      }
+      // If loading entities only by conditions, fetch all available entities from
+      // the cache. Entities which don't match are removed later.
+      elseif ($conditions) {
+        $entities = $this->entity_cache;
+      }
+    }
+
+    // Exclude any entities loaded from cache if they don't match $conditions.
+    // This ensures the same behavior whether loading from memory or database.
+    if ($conditions) {
+      foreach ($entities as $entity) {
+        $entity_values = (array) $entity;
+        if (array_diff_assoc($this->conditions, $entity_values)) {
+          unset($entities[$entity->{$this->id_key}]);
+        }
+      }
+    }
+    return $entities;
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Store entities in the static entity cache.
+   */
+  protected function cacheSet($entities) {
+    $this->entity_cache += $entities;
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git includes/file.inc includes/file.inc
index 0eb2b3f..5ba07b0 100644
--- includes/file.inc
+++ includes/file.inc
@@ -268,34 +268,12 @@ function file_check_location($source, $directory = '') {
  * @return
  *  An array of file objects, indexed by fid.
  *
+ * @see drupal_load_multiple()
  * @see hook_file_load()
  * @see file_load()
  */
 function file_load_multiple($fids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
-  $query = db_select('files', 'f')->fields('f');
-
-  // If the $fids array is populated, add those to the query.
-  if ($fids) {
-    $query->condition('f.fid', $fids, 'IN');
-  }
-
-  // If the conditions array is populated, add those to the query.
-  if ($conditions) {
-    foreach ($conditions as $field => $value) {
-      $query->condition('f.' . $field, $value);
-    }
-  }
-  $files = $query->execute()->fetchAllAssoc('fid');
-
-  // Invoke hook_file_load() on the terms loaded from the database
-  // and add them to the static cache.
-  if (!empty($files)) {
-    foreach (module_implements('file_load') as $module) {
-      $function = $module . '_file_load';
-      $function($files);
-    }
-  }
-  return $files;
+  return drupal_load_multiple('file', $fids, $conditions);
 }
 
 /**
diff --git install.php install.php
index 7304a19..ec31412 100644
--- install.php
+++ install.php
@@ -51,6 +51,7 @@ function install_main() {
   // Load module basics (needed for hook invokes).
   include_once DRUPAL_ROOT . '/includes/module.inc';
   include_once DRUPAL_ROOT . '/includes/session.inc';
+  include_once DRUPAL_ROOT . '/includes/entity.inc';
   $module_list['system']['filename'] = 'modules/system/system.module';
   $module_list['filter']['filename'] = 'modules/filter/filter.module';
   module_list(TRUE, FALSE, $module_list);
diff --git modules/field/field.api.php modules/field/field.api.php
index c0ef28d..938e66a 100644
--- modules/field/field.api.php
+++ modules/field/field.api.php
@@ -2,62 +2,6 @@
 // $Id: field.api.php,v 1.13 2009-06-04 03:33:27 webchick Exp $
 
 /**
- * @ingroup field_fieldable_type
- * @{
- */
-
-/**
- * Inform the Field API about one or more fieldable types.
- *
- * Inform the Field API about one or more fieldable types, (object
- * types to which fields can be attached).
- *
- * @return
- *   An array whose keys are fieldable object type names and
- *   whose values identify properties of those types that the Field
- *   system needs to know about:
- *
- *   name: The human-readable name of the type.
- *   id key: The object property that contains the primary id for the
- *     object. Every object passed to the Field API must
- *     have this property and its value must be numeric.
- *   revision key: The object property that contains the revision id
- *     for the object, or NULL if the object type is not
- *     versioned. The Field API assumes that all revision ids are
- *     unique across all instances of a type; this means, for example,
- *     that every object's revision ids cannot be 0, 1, 2, ...
- *   bundle key: The object property that contains the bundle name for
- *     the object (bundle name is what nodes call "content type").
- *     The bundle name defines which fields are connected to the object.
- *   cacheable: A boolean indicating whether Field API should cache
- *     loaded fields for each object, reducing the cost of
- *     field_attach_load().
- *   bundles: An array of all existing bundle names for this object
- *     type. TODO: Define format. TODO: I'm unclear why we need
- *     this.
- */
-function hook_fieldable_info() {
-  $return = array(
-    'node' => array(
-      'name' => t('Node'),
-      'id key' => 'nid',
-      'revision key' => 'vid',
-      'bundle key' => 'type',
-      // Node.module handles its own caching.
-      'cacheable' => FALSE,
-      // Bundles must provide human readable name so
-      // we can create help and error messages about them.
-      'bundles' => node_type_get_names(),
-    ),
-  );
-  return $return;
-}
-
-/**
- * @} End of "ingroup field_fieldable_type"
- */
-
-/**
  * @defgroup field_types Field Types API
  * @{
  * Define field types, widget types, and display formatter types.
diff --git modules/field/field.info.inc modules/field/field.info.inc
index 77fcfc9..24ef6fe 100644
--- modules/field/field.info.inc
+++ modules/field/field.info.inc
@@ -118,24 +118,26 @@ function _field_info_collate_types($reset = FALSE) {
       }
 
       // Populate information about 'fieldable' entities.
-      foreach (module_implements('fieldable_info') as $module) {
-        $fieldable_types = (array) module_invoke($module, 'fieldable_info');
+      foreach (module_implements('entity_info') as $module) {
+        $fieldable_types = (array) module_invoke($module, 'entity_info');
         foreach ($fieldable_types as $name => $fieldable_info) {
-          // Provide defaults.
-          $fieldable_info += array(
-            'revision key' => '',
-            'bundle key' => '',
-            'cacheable' => TRUE,
-            'bundles' => array(),
-          );
-          // If no bundle key provided, then we assume a single bundle, named
-          // after the type of the object. Make sure the bundle created
-          // has the human-readable name we need for bundle messages.
-          if (empty($fieldable_info['bundle key'])) {
-            $fieldable_info['bundles'] = array($name => $fieldable_info['name']);
+          if (!empty($fieldable_info['fieldable'])) {
+            // Provide defaults.
+            $fieldable_info += array(
+              'revision key' => '',
+              'bundle key' => '',
+              'cacheable' => TRUE,
+              'bundles' => array(),
+            );
+            // If no bundle key provided, then we assume a single bundle, named
+            // after the type of the object. Make sure the bundle created
+            // has the human-readable name we need for bundle messages.
+            if (empty($fieldable_info['bundle key'])) {
+              $fieldable_info['bundles'] = array($name => $fieldable_info['name']);
+            }
+            $info['fieldable types'][$name] = $fieldable_info;
+            $info['fieldable types'][$name]['module'] = $module;
           }
-          $info['fieldable types'][$name] = $fieldable_info;
-          $info['fieldable types'][$name]['module'] = $module;
         }
       }
 
diff --git modules/field/field.test modules/field/field.test
index ce6d462..2632339 100644
--- modules/field/field.test
+++ modules/field/field.test
@@ -408,7 +408,7 @@ class FieldAttachTestCase extends DrupalWebTestCase {
 
   function testFieldAttachCreateRenameBundle() {
     // Create a new bundle. This has to be initiated by the module so that its
-    // hook_fieldable_info() is consistent.
+    // hook_entity_info() is consistent.
     $new_bundle = 'test_bundle_' . drupal_strtolower($this->randomName());
     field_test_create_bundle($new_bundle);
 
@@ -429,7 +429,7 @@ class FieldAttachTestCase extends DrupalWebTestCase {
     $this->assertEqual(count($entity->{$this->field_name}), $this->field['cardinality'], "Data are retrieved for the new bundle");
 
     // Rename the bundle. This has to be initiated by the module so that its
-    // hook_fieldable_info() is consistent.
+    // hook_entity_info() is consistent.
     $new_bundle = 'test_bundle_' . drupal_strtolower($this->randomName());
     field_test_rename_bundle($this->instance['bundle'], $new_bundle);
 
@@ -445,7 +445,7 @@ class FieldAttachTestCase extends DrupalWebTestCase {
 
   function testFieldAttachDeleteBundle() {
     // Create a new bundle. This has to be initiated by the module so that its
-    // hook_fieldable_info() is consistent.
+    // hook_entity_info() is consistent.
     $new_bundle = 'test_bundle_' . drupal_strtolower($this->randomName());
     field_test_create_bundle($new_bundle);
 
@@ -485,7 +485,7 @@ class FieldAttachTestCase extends DrupalWebTestCase {
     $this->assertEqual(count($entity->{$field_name}), 1, "Second field got loaded");
 
     // Delete the bundle. This has to be initiated by the module so that its
-    // hook_fieldable_info() is consistent.
+    // hook_entity_info() is consistent.
     field_test_delete_bundle($this->instance['bundle']);
 
     // Verify no data gets loaded
diff --git modules/forum/forum.test modules/forum/forum.test
index ede9c37..588728a 100644
--- modules/forum/forum.test
+++ modules/forum/forum.test
@@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ class ForumTestCase extends DrupalWebTestCase {
     $this->assertRaw(t('Updated vocabulary %name.', array('%name' => $title)), t('Vocabulary was edited'));
 
     // Grab the newly edited vocabulary.
-    drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple');
+    drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_vocabulary')->resetCache();
     $current_settings = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid);
 
     // Make sure we actually edited the vocabulary properly.
diff --git modules/node/node.module modules/node/node.module
index dacc46b..99f9380 100644
--- modules/node/node.module
+++ modules/node/node.module
@@ -152,14 +152,18 @@ function node_cron() {
 }
 
 /**
- * Implement hook_fieldable_info().
+ * Implement hook_entity_info().
  */
-function node_fieldable_info() {
+function node_entity_info() {
   $return = array(
     'node' => array(
       'name' => t('Node'),
+      'loader class' => 'NodeLoader',
+      'base table' => 'node',
       'id key' => 'nid',
       'revision key' => 'vid',
+      'revision table' => 'node_revision',
+      'fieldable' => TRUE,
       'bundle key' => 'type',
       // Node.module handles its own caching.
       // 'cacheable' => FALSE,
@@ -198,7 +202,7 @@ function node_field_build_modes($obj_type) {
  * Gather a listing of links to nodes.
  *
  * @param $result
- *   A DB result object from a query to fetch node objects. If your query
+ *   A DB result object from a query to fetch node entites. If your query
  *   joins the <code>node_comment_statistics</code> table so that the
  *   <code>comment_count</code> field is available, a title attribute will
  *   be added to show the number of comments.
@@ -817,12 +821,14 @@ function node_invoke($node, $hook, $a2 = NULL, $a3 = NULL, $a4 = NULL) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Load node objects from the database.
+ * Load node entities from the database.
  *
  * This function should be used whenever you need to load more than one node
  * from the database. Nodes are loaded into memory and will not require
  * database access if loaded again during the same page request.
  *
+ * @see drupal_load_multiple()
+ *
  * @param $nids
  *   An array of node IDs.
  * @param $conditions
@@ -834,144 +840,7 @@ function node_invoke($node, $hook, $a2 = NULL, $a3 = NULL, $a4 = NULL) {
  *   An array of node objects indexed by nid.
  */
 function node_load_multiple($nids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
-  $node_cache = &drupal_static(__FUNCTION__, array());
-
-  if ($reset) {
-    $node_cache = array();
-  }
-  $nodes = array();
-
-  // Create a new variable which is either a prepared version of the $nids
-  // array for later comparison with the node cache, or FALSE if no $nids were
-  // passed. The $nids array is reduced as items are loaded from cache, and we
-  // need to know if it's empty for this reason to avoid querying the database
-  // when all requested nodes are loaded from cache.
-  $passed_nids = !empty($nids) ? array_flip($nids) : FALSE;
-
-  // Revisions are not statically cached, and require a different query to
-  // other conditions, so separate vid into its own variable.
-  $vid = isset($conditions['vid']) ? $conditions['vid'] : FALSE;
-  unset($conditions['vid']);
-
-  // Load any available nodes from the internal cache.
-  if ($node_cache && !$vid) {
-    if ($nids) {
-      $nodes += array_intersect_key($node_cache, $passed_nids);
-      // If any nodes were loaded, remove them from the $nids still to load.
-      $nids = array_keys(array_diff_key($passed_nids, $nodes));
-    }
-    // If loading nodes only by conditions, fetch all available nodes from
-    // the cache. Nodes which don't match are removed later.
-    elseif ($conditions) {
-      $nodes = $node_cache;
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Exclude any nodes loaded from cache if they don't match $conditions.
-  // This ensures the same behavior whether loading from memory or database.
-  if ($conditions) {
-    foreach ($nodes as $node) {
-      $node_values = (array) $node;
-      if (array_diff_assoc($conditions, $node_values)) {
-        unset($nodes[$node->nid]);
-      }
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Load any remaining nodes from the database. This is the case if there are
-  // any $nids left to load, if loading a revision, or if $conditions was
-  // passed without $nids.
-  if ($nids || $vid || ($conditions && !$passed_nids)) {
-    $query = db_select('node', 'n');
-
-    if ($vid) {
-      $query->join('node_revision', 'r', 'r.nid = n.nid AND r.vid = :vid', array(':vid' => $vid));
-    }
-    else {
-      $query->join('node_revision', 'r', 'r.vid = n.vid');
-    }
-
-    // Add fields from the {node} table.
-    $node_fields = drupal_schema_fields_sql('node');
-
-    // vid and title are provided by node_revision, so remove them.
-    unset($node_fields['vid']);
-    unset($node_fields['title']);
-    $query->fields('n', $node_fields);
-
-    // Add all fields from the {node_revision} table.
-    $node_revision_fields = drupal_schema_fields_sql('node_revision');
-
-    // nid is provided by node, so remove it.
-    unset($node_revision_fields['nid']);
-
-    // Change timestamp to revision_timestamp before adding it to the query.
-    unset($node_revision_fields['timestamp']);
-    $query->addField('r', 'timestamp', 'revision_timestamp');
-    $query->fields('r', $node_revision_fields);
-
-    if ($nids) {
-      $query->condition('n.nid', $nids, 'IN');
-    }
-    if ($conditions) {
-      foreach ($conditions as $field => $value) {
-        $query->condition('n.' . $field, $value);
-      }
-    }
-    $queried_nodes = $query->execute()->fetchAllAssoc('nid');
-  }
-
-  // Pass all nodes loaded from the database through the node type specific
-  // callbacks and hook_node_load(), then add them to the internal cache.
-  if (!empty($queried_nodes)) {
-    // Create an array of nodes for each content type and pass this to the
-    // node type specific callback.
-    $typed_nodes = array();
-    foreach ($queried_nodes as $nid => $node) {
-      $typed_nodes[$node->type][$nid] = $node;
-    }
-
-    // Call node type specific callbacks on each typed array of nodes.
-    foreach ($typed_nodes as $type => $nodes_of_type) {
-      if (node_hook($type, 'load')) {
-        $function = node_type_get_base($type) . '_load';
-        $function($nodes_of_type);
-      }
-    }
-
-    // Attach fields.
-    if ($vid) {
-      field_attach_load_revision('node', $queried_nodes);
-    }
-    else {
-      field_attach_load('node', $queried_nodes);
-    }
-
-    // Call hook_node_load(), pass the node types so modules can return early
-    // if not acting on types in the array.
-    foreach (module_implements('node_load') as $module) {
-      $function = $module . '_node_load';
-      $function($queried_nodes, array_keys($typed_nodes));
-    }
-    $nodes += $queried_nodes;
-    // Add nodes to the cache if we're not loading a revision.
-    if (!$vid) {
-      $node_cache += $queried_nodes;
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Ensure that the returned array is ordered the same as the original $nids
-  // array if this was passed in and remove any invalid nids.
-  if ($passed_nids) {
-    // Remove any invalid nids from the array.
-    $passed_nids = array_intersect_key($passed_nids, $nodes);
-    foreach ($nodes as $node) {
-      $passed_nids[$node->nid] = $node;
-    }
-    $nodes = $passed_nids;
-  }
-
-  return $nodes;
+  return drupal_load_multiple('node', $nids, $conditions, $reset);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -990,7 +859,6 @@ function node_load_multiple($nids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FAL
 function node_load($nid, $vid = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
   $vid = isset($vid) ? array('vid' => $vid) : NULL;
   $node = node_load_multiple(array($nid), $vid, $reset);
-
   return $node ? $node[$nid] : FALSE;
 }
 
@@ -3376,3 +3244,30 @@ function node_elements() {
 function theme_node_links($element) {
   return theme('links', $element['#value'],  array('class' => 'links inline'));
 }
+
+/**
+ * Loader class for nodes.
+ *
+ * This extends the DrupalDefaultEntityLoader class, adding required special
+ * handling for node objects.
+ */
+class NodeLoader extends DrupalDefaultEntityLoader {
+  protected function attachLoad(&$nodes) {
+    // Create an array of nodes for each content type and pass this to the
+    // object type specific callback.
+    $typed_nodes = array();
+    foreach ($nodes as $id => $object) {
+      $typed_nodes[$object->type][$id] = $object;
+    }
+
+    // Call object type specific callbacks on each typed array of nodes.
+    foreach ($typed_nodes as $node_type => $nodes_of_type) {
+      if (node_hook($node_type, 'load')) {
+        $function = node_type_get_base($type) . '_load';
+        $function($nodes_of_type);
+      }
+    }
+    $this->hook_load_arguments[] = array_keys($typed_nodes);
+    parent::attachLoad($nodes);
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git modules/node/node.test modules/node/node.test
index 12610c7..29b92cf 100644
--- modules/node/node.test
+++ modules/node/node.test
@@ -57,6 +57,8 @@ class NodeLoadMultipleUnitTest extends DrupalWebTestCase {
     // Load nodes by nid, where type = article. Nodes 1, 2 and 3 will be loaded.
     $nodes = node_load_multiple(array(1, 2, 3, 4), array('type' => 'article'));
     $count = count($nodes);
+    dd($nodes);
+    dd('count:' . $count);
     $this->assertTrue($count == 3, t('@count nodes loaded', array('@count' => $count)));
     $this->assertEqual($nodes[$node1->nid]->title, $node1->title, t('Node successfully loaded.'));
     $this->assertEqual($nodes[$node2->nid]->title, $node2->title, t('Node successfully loaded.'));
@@ -67,6 +69,8 @@ class NodeLoadMultipleUnitTest extends DrupalWebTestCase {
     // they are loaded correctly again when a condition is passed.
     $nodes = node_load_multiple(array(1, 2, 3, 4), array('type' => 'article'));
     $count = count($nodes);
+    dd($nodes);
+    dd('count:' . $count);
     $this->assertTrue($count == 3, t('@count nodes loaded.', array('@count' => $count)));
     $this->assertEqual($nodes[$node1->nid]->title, $node1->title, t('Node successfully loaded'));
     $this->assertEqual($nodes[$node2->nid]->title, $node2->title, t('Node successfully loaded'));
diff --git modules/simpletest/tests/field_test.module modules/simpletest/tests/field_test.module
index 5610c77..6a751f3 100644
--- modules/simpletest/tests/field_test.module
+++ modules/simpletest/tests/field_test.module
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ function field_test_perm() {
  */
 function field_test_menu() {
   $items = array();
-  $info = field_test_fieldable_info();
+  $info = field_test_entity_info();
 
   foreach (array_keys($info['test_entity']['bundles']) as $bundle) {
     $bundle_url_str = str_replace('_', '-', $bundle);
@@ -60,11 +60,12 @@ function field_test_menu() {
 /**
  * Define a test fieldable entity.
  */
-function field_test_fieldable_info() {
+function field_test_entity_info() {
   $bundles = variable_get('field_test_bundles', array('test_bundle' => 'Test Bundle'));
   return array(
     'test_entity' => array(
       'name' => t('Test Entity'),
+      'fieldable' => TRUE,
       'id key' => 'ftid',
       'revision key' => 'ftvid',
       'cacheable' => FALSE,
@@ -74,6 +75,7 @@ function field_test_fieldable_info() {
     // This entity type doesn't get form handling for now...
     'test_cacheable_entity' => array(
       'name' => t('Test Entity, cacheable'),
+      'fieldable' => TRUE,
       'id key' => 'ftid',
       'revision key' => 'ftvid',
       'cacheable' => TRUE,
diff --git modules/system/system.admin.inc modules/system/system.admin.inc
index b18dbaf..2f75a45 100644
--- modules/system/system.admin.inc
+++ modules/system/system.admin.inc
@@ -579,6 +579,7 @@ function system_modules($form_state = array()) {
   drupal_theme_rebuild();
   node_types_rebuild();
   cache_clear_all('schema', 'cache');
+  cache_clear_all('entity_info', 'cache');
   // Get current list of modules.
   $files = module_rebuild_cache();
 
diff --git modules/system/system.api.php modules/system/system.api.php
index 0d4f447..b6b4ea8 100644
--- modules/system/system.api.php
+++ modules/system/system.api.php
@@ -12,6 +12,85 @@
  */
 
 /**
+ * Inform the base system and the Field API about one or more entity types.
+ *
+ * Inform the system about one or more entity types (i.e., object types that can
+ * be loaded via drupal_load_multiple() and, optionally, to which fields can be
+ * attached).
+ *
+ * @see drupal_load_multiple()
+ * @see hook_entity_info_alter()
+ *
+ * @return
+ *   An array whose keys are entity type names and whose values identify
+ *   properties of those types that the  system needs to know about:
+ *
+ *   name: The human-readable name of the type.
+ *   loader class: The name of the class that is used to load the objects.
+ *     The class has to implement the DrupalEntityLoader interface. Leave blank
+ *     to use the DefaultDrupalEntityLoader implementation.
+ *   base table: (used by DefaultDrupalEntityLoader) The name of the entity
+ *     type's base table.
+ *   static cache: (used by DefaultDrupalEntityLoader) FALSE to disable static
+ *     caching of loaded entities during a page request. Defaults to TRUE.
+ *   fieldable: Set to TRUE if you want your entity type to be fieldable.
+ *   id key: The object property that contains the primary id for the
+ *     object. Every object passed to the Field API must
+ *     have this property and its value must be numeric.
+ *   revision key: The object property that contains the revision id
+ *     for the object, or NULL if the object type is not
+ *     versioned. The Field API assumes that all revision ids are
+ *     unique across all instances of a type; this means, for example,
+ *     that every object's revision ids cannot be 0, 1, 2, ...
+ *   bundle key: The object property that contains the bundle name for
+ *     the object (bundle name is what nodes call "content type").
+ *     The bundle name defines which fields are connected to the object.
+ *   cacheable: A boolean indicating whether Field API should cache
+ *     loaded fields for each object, reducing the cost of
+ *     field_attach_load().
+ *   bundles: An array of all existing bundle names for this object
+ *     type. TODO: Define format. TODO: I'm unclear why we need
+ *     this.
+ */
+function hook_entity_info() {
+  $return = array(
+    'node' => array(
+      'name' => t('Node'),
+      'loader class' => 'NodeLoader',
+      'base table' => 'node',
+      'id key' => 'nid',
+      'revision key' => 'vid',
+      'fieldable' => TRUE,
+      'bundle key' => 'type',
+      // Node.module handles its own caching.
+      // 'cacheable' => FALSE,
+      // Bundles must provide human readable name so
+      // we can create help and error messages about them.
+      'bundles' => node_type_get_names(),
+    ),
+  );
+  return $return;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Alter the entity info.
+ *
+ * Modules may implement this hook to alter the information that defines an
+ * entity. All properties that are available in hook_entity_info() can be
+ * altered here.
+ *
+ * @see hook_entity_info()
+ *
+ * @param $entity_info
+ *   The entity info array, keyed by entity name.
+ */
+function hook_entity_info_alter(&$entity_info) {
+  // Set the loader class for nodes to an alternate Implement the
+  // DrupalEntityLoader interface.
+  $entity_info['node']['loader class'] = 'MyCustomNodeLoader';
+}
+
+/**
  * Perform periodic actions.
  *
  * Modules that require to schedule some commands to be executed at regular
diff --git modules/system/system.module modules/system/system.module
index 4672859..c30209c 100644
--- modules/system/system.module
+++ modules/system/system.module
@@ -228,6 +228,20 @@ function system_rdf_namespaces() {
 }
 
 /**
+ * Implement hook_entity_info().
+ */
+function system_entity_info() {
+  return array(
+    'file' => array(
+      'name' => t('File'),
+      'base table' => 'files',
+      'id key' => 'fid',
+      'static cache' => FALSE,
+    ),
+  );
+}
+
+/**
  * Implement hook_elements().
  */
 function system_elements() {
diff --git modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module
index 1a719a2..0e5f5f3 100644
--- modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module
+++ modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.module
@@ -263,7 +263,7 @@ function taxonomy_vocabulary_save($vocabulary) {
   }
 
   cache_clear_all();
-  drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple');
+  drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_vocabulary')->resetCache();
 
   return $status;
 }
@@ -293,7 +293,7 @@ function taxonomy_vocabulary_delete($vid) {
   module_invoke_all('taxonomy', 'delete', 'vocabulary', $vocabulary);
 
   cache_clear_all();
-  drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple');
+  drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_vocabulary')->resetCache();
 
   return SAVED_DELETED;
 }
@@ -503,7 +503,7 @@ function taxonomy_terms_static_reset() {
   drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_term_count_nodes');
   drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_get_tree');
   drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_get_synonym_root');
-  drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_term_load_multiple');
+  drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_term')->resetCache();
 }
 
 /**
@@ -567,7 +567,7 @@ function taxonomy_form_all($free_tags = 0) {
  */
 function taxonomy_get_vocabularies($type = NULL) {
   $conditions = !empty($type) ? array('type' => $type) : NULL;
-  return taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(array(), $conditions);
+  return taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(FALSE, $conditions);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -1122,98 +1122,103 @@ function taxonomy_get_term_by_name($name) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Load 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.
+ * Return array of tids and join operator.
  *
- * @param $vids
- *  An array of taxonomy vocabulary IDs.
- * @param $conditions
- *  An array of conditions to add to the query.
+ * This is a wrapper function for taxonomy_terms_parse_string which is called
+ * by the menu system when loading a path with taxonomy terms.
+ */
+function taxonomy_terms_load($str_tids) {
+  $terms = taxonomy_terms_parse_string($str_tids);
+  return $terms;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Implement hook_entity_info().
+ */
+function taxonomy_entity_info() {
+  return array(
+    'taxonomy_term' => array(
+      'name' => t('Taxonomy term'),
+      'loader class' => 'TaxonomyTermLoader',
+      'base table' => 'taxonomy_term_data',
+      'id key' => 'tid',
+      'fieldable' => FALSE,
+    ),
+    'taxonomy_vocabulary' => array(
+      'name' => t('Taxonomy vocabulary'),
+      'loader class' => 'TaxonomyVocabularyLoader',
+      'base table' => 'taxonomy_vocabulary',
+      'id key' => 'vid',
+      'fieldable' => FALSE,
+    )
+  );
+}
+
+/**
+ * Loader class for taxonomy terms.
  *
- * @return
- *  An array of vocabulary objects, indexed by vid.
+ * This extends the DrupalDefaultEntityLoader class. Only alteration is that
+ * we match the condition on term name case-independently.
  */
-function taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple($vids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
-  $vocabulary_cache = &drupal_static(__FUNCTION__, array());
-  // Node type associations are not stored in the vocabulary table, so remove
-  // this from conditions into it's own variable.
-  if (isset($conditions['type'])) {
-    $type = $conditions['type'];
-    unset($conditions['type']);
-  }
-
-  $vocabularies = array();
-
-  // Create a new variable which is either a prepared version of the $vids
-  // array for later comparison with the term cache, or FALSE if no $vids were
-  // passed. The $vids array is reduced as items are loaded from cache, and we
-  // need to know if it's empty for this reason to avoid querying the database
-  // when all requested items are loaded from cache.
-  $passed_vids = !empty($vids) ? array_flip($vids) : FALSE;
-
-  // Load any available items from the internal cache.
-  if ($vocabulary_cache) {
-    if ($vids) {
-      $vocabularies += array_intersect_key($vocabulary_cache, $passed_vids);
-      // If any items were loaded, remove them from the $vids still to load.
-      $vids = array_keys(array_diff_key($passed_vids, $vocabularies));
-    }
-    // If only conditions is passed, load all items from the cache. Items
-    // which don't match conditions will be removed later.
-    elseif ($conditions) {
-      $vocabularies = $vocabulary_cache;
+class TaxonomyTermLoader extends DrupalDefaultEntityLoader {
+  protected function buildQuery() {
+    parent::buildQuery();
+    // When name is passed as a condition use LIKE.
+    if (isset($this->conditions['name'])) {
+      $conditions = &$this->query->conditions();
+      foreach ($conditions as $key => $condition) {
+        if ($condition['field'] == 'base.name') {
+          $conditions[$key]['operator'] = 'LIKE';
+        }
+      }
     }
   }
-
-  // Remove any loaded terms from the array if they don't match $conditions.
-  if ($conditions || isset($type)) {
-    foreach ($vocabularies as $vocabulary) {
-      $vocabulary_values = (array) $vocabulary;
-      if (array_diff_assoc($conditions, $vocabulary_values)) {
-        unset($vocabularies[$vocabulary->vid]);
-      }
-      if (isset($type) && !in_array($type, $vocabulary->nodes)) {
-        unset($vocabularies[$vocabulary->vid]);
+  protected function cacheGet($ids) {
+    $terms = parent::cacheGet($ids);
+    // Name matching is case insensitive, note that with some collations
+    // LOWER() and drupal_strtolower() may return different results.
+    foreach ($terms as $term) {
+      $term_values = (array) $term;
+      if (isset($this->conditions['name']) && drupal_strtolower($this->conditions['name'] != drupal_strtolower($term_values['name']))) {
+        unset($terms[$term->tid]);
       }
     }
+    return $terms;
   }
+}
 
-  // Load any remaining vocabularies from the database, this is necessary if
-  // we have $vids still to load, or if no $vids were passed.
-  if ($vids || !$passed_vids) {
-    $query = db_select('taxonomy_vocabulary', 'v');
-    $query->addField('n', 'type');
-    $query
-      ->fields('v')
-      ->orderBy('v.weight')
-      ->orderBy('v.name');
+/**
+ * Loader class for taxonomy vocabularies.
+ *
+ * This extends the DrupalDefaultEntityLoader class, adding required special
+ * handling for taxonomy vocabulary objects.
+ */
+class TaxonomyVocabularyLoader extends DrupalDefaultEntityLoader {
+  protected $type;
 
-    if (!empty($type)) {
-      $query->leftJoin('taxonomy_vocabulary_node_type', 'n', 'v.vid = n.vid AND n.type  = :type', array(':type' => $type));
-    }
-    else {
-      $query->leftJoin('taxonomy_vocabulary_node_type', 'n', 'v.vid = n.vid');
+  public function loadMultiple($ids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
+    if (isset($conditions['type'])) {
+      $this->type = $conditions['type'];
+      unset($conditions['type']);
     }
+    return parent::loadMultiple($ids, $conditions);
+  }
 
-    // If the $vids array is populated, add those to the query.
-    if ($vids) {
-      $query->condition('v.vid', $vids, 'IN');
+  protected function buildQuery() {
+    parent::buildQuery();
+    $this->query->addField('n', 'type');
+    if (!empty($this->type)) {
+      $this->query->leftJoin('taxonomy_vocabulary_node_type', 'n', 'base.vid = n.vid AND n.type  = :type', array(':type' => $this->type));
     }
-
-    // If the conditions array is populated, add those to the query.
-    if ($conditions) {
-      foreach ($conditions as $field => $value) {
-        $query->condition('v.' . $field, $value);
-      }
+    else {
+      $this->query->leftJoin('taxonomy_vocabulary_node_type', 'n', 'base.vid = n.vid');
     }
-    $result = $query->execute();
+    $this->query->orderBy('base.weight');
+    $this->query->orderBy('base.name');
+  }
 
-    $queried_vocabularies = array();
-    $node_types = array();
-    foreach ($result as $record) {
+  protected function attachLoad(&$records) {
+    foreach ($records as $record) {
       // If no node types are associated with a vocabulary, the LEFT JOIN will
       // return a NULL value for type.
       if (isset($record->type)) {
@@ -1226,56 +1231,9 @@ function taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple($vids = array(), $conditions = array(
       }
       $queried_vocabularies[$record->vid] = $record;
     }
-
-    // Invoke hook_taxonomy_vocabulary_load() on the vocabularies loaded from
-    // the database and add them to the static cache.
-    if (!empty($queried_vocabularies)) {
-      foreach (module_implements('taxonomy_vocabulary_load') as $module) {
-        $function = $module . '_taxonomy_vocabulary_load';
-        $function($queried_vocabularies);
-      }
-      $vocabularies += $queried_vocabularies;
-      $vocabulary_cache += $queried_vocabularies;
-    }
+    $records = $queried_vocabularies;
+    parent::attachLoad($records);
   }
-
-  // Ensure that the returned array is ordered the same as the original $vids
-  // array if this was passed in and remove any invalid vids.
-  if ($passed_vids) {
-    // Remove any invalid vids from the array.
-    $passed_vids = array_intersect_key($passed_vids, $vocabularies);
-    foreach ($vocabularies as $vocabulary) {
-      $passed_vids[$vocabulary->vid] = $vocabulary;
-    }
-    $vocabularies = $passed_vids;
-  }
-
-  return $vocabularies;
-}
-
-/**
- * Return the vocabulary object matching a vocabulary ID.
- *
- * @param $vid
- *   The vocabulary's ID.
- *
- * @return
- *   The vocabulary object with all of its metadata, if exists, FALSE otherwise.
- *   Results are statically cached.
- */
-function taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid) {
-  return reset(taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(array($vid), array()));
-}
-
-/**
- * Return array of tids and join operator.
- *
- * This is a wrapper function for taxonomy_terms_parse_string which is called
- * by the menu system when loading a path with taxonomy terms.
- */
-function taxonomy_terms_load($str_tids) {
-  $terms = taxonomy_terms_parse_string($str_tids);
-  return $terms;
 }
 
 /**
@@ -1294,94 +1252,44 @@ function taxonomy_terms_load($str_tids) {
  *  An array of term objects, indexed by tid.
  */
 function taxonomy_term_load_multiple($tids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
-  $term_cache = &drupal_static(__FUNCTION__, array());
-
-  $terms = array();
-
-  // Create a new variable which is either a prepared version of the $tids
-  // array for later comparison with the term cache, or FALSE if no $tids were
-  // passed. The $tids array is reduced as items are loaded from cache, and we
-  // need to know if it's empty for this reason to avoid querying the database
-  // when all requested terms are loaded from cache.
-  $passed_tids = !empty($tids) ? array_flip($tids) : FALSE;
-
-  // Load any available terms from the internal cache.
-  if ($term_cache) {
-    if ($tids) {
-      $terms += array_intersect_key($term_cache, $passed_tids);
-      // If any terms were loaded, remove them from the $tids still to load.
-      $tids = array_keys(array_diff_key($passed_tids, $terms));
-    }
-    // If only conditions is passed, load all terms from the cache. Terms
-    // which don't match conditions will be removed later.
-    elseif ($conditions) {
-      $terms = $term_cache;
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Remove any loaded terms from the array if they don't match $conditions.
-  if ($conditions) {
-    // Name matching is case insensitive, note that with some collations 
-    // LOWER() and drupal_strtolower() may return different results.
-    foreach ($terms as $term) {
-      $term_values = (array) $term;
-      if (isset($conditions['name']) && drupal_strtolower($conditions['name'] != drupal_strtolower($term_values['name']))) {
-        unset($terms[$term->tid]);
-      }
-      elseif (array_diff_assoc($conditions, $term_values)) {
-        unset($terms[$term->tid]);
-      }
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Load any remaining terms from the database, this is necessary if we have
-  // $tids still to load, or if $conditions was passed without $tids.
-  if ($tids || ($conditions && !$passed_tids)) {
-    $query = db_select('taxonomy_term_data', 't');
-    $taxonomy_term_data = drupal_schema_fields_sql('taxonomy_term_data');
-    $query->fields('t', $taxonomy_term_data);
-
-    // If the $tids array is populated, add those to the query.
-    if ($tids) {
-      $query->condition('t.tid', $tids, 'IN');
-    }
-
-    // If the conditions array is populated, add those to the query.
-    if ($conditions) {
-      // When name is passed as a condition use LIKE.
-      if (isset($conditions['name'])) {
-        $query->condition('t.name', $conditions['name'], 'LIKE');
-        unset($conditions['name']);
-      }
-      foreach ($conditions as $field => $value) {
-        $query->condition('t.' . $field, $value);
-      }
-    }
-    $queried_terms = $query->execute()->fetchAllAssoc('tid');
-    // Invoke hook_taxonomy_term_load() on the terms loaded from the database
-    // and add them to the static cache.
-    if (!empty($queried_terms)) {
-      foreach (module_implements('taxonomy_term_load') as $module) {
-        $function = $module . '_taxonomy_term_load';
-        $function($queried_terms);
-      }
-      $terms += $queried_terms;
-      $term_cache += $queried_terms;
-    }
-  }
+  return drupal_load_multiple('taxonomy_term', $tids, $conditions);
+}
 
-  // Ensure that the returned array is ordered the same as the original $tids
-  // array if this was passed in and remove any invalid tids.
-  if ($passed_tids) {
-    // Remove any invalid tids from the array.
-    $passed_tids = array_intersect_key($passed_tids, $terms);
-    foreach ($terms as $term) {
-      $passed_tids[$term->tid] = $term;
-    }
-    $terms = $passed_tids;
-  }
+/**
+ * Load 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 drupal_load_multiple()
+ *
+ * @param $vids
+ *  An array of taxonomy vocabulary IDs, or FALSE to load all vocabularies.
+ * @param $conditions
+ *  An array of conditions to add to the query.
+ *
+ * @return
+ *  An array of vocabulary objects, indexed by vid.
+ */
+function taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple($vids = array(), $conditions = array()) {
+  return drupal_load_multiple('taxonomy_vocabulary', $vids, $conditions);
+}
 
-  return $terms;
+/**
+ * Return the vocabulary object matching a vocabulary ID.
+ *
+ * @see drupal_load_multiple()
+ *
+ * @param $vid
+ *   The vocabulary's ID.
+ *
+ * @return
+ *   The vocabulary object with all of its metadata, if exists, FALSE otherwise.
+ *   Results are statically cached.
+ */
+function taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid) {
+  return reset(taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(array($vid), array()));
 }
 
 /**
diff --git modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test
index ae24fcb..abd9991 100644
--- modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test
+++ modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.test
@@ -151,7 +151,7 @@ class TaxonomyVocabularyFunctionalTest extends TaxonomyWebTestCase {
     // Check the created vocabulary.
     $vocabularies = taxonomy_get_vocabularies();
     $vid = $vocabularies[count($vocabularies)-1]->vid;
-    drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple');
+    drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_vocabulary')->resetCache();
     $vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid);
     $this->assertTrue($vocabulary, t('Vocabulary found in database'));
 
@@ -164,7 +164,7 @@ class TaxonomyVocabularyFunctionalTest extends TaxonomyWebTestCase {
     // Confirm deletion.
     $this->drupalPost(NULL, NULL, t('Delete'));
     $this->assertRaw(t('Deleted vocabulary %name.', array('%name' => $vocabulary->name)), t('Vocabulary deleted'));
-    drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple');
+    drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_vocabulary')->resetCache();
     $this->assertFalse(taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid), t('Vocabulary is not found in the database'));
   }
 }
@@ -194,47 +194,47 @@ class TaxonomyVocabularyUnitTest extends TaxonomyWebTestCase {
    * Ensure that when an invalid vocabulary vid is loaded, it is possible
    * to load the same vid successfully if it subsequently becomes valid.
    */
-  function testTaxonomyVocabularyLoadReturnFalse() {
-    // Load a vocabulary that doesn't exist.
-    $vocabularies = taxonomy_get_vocabularies();
-    $vid = count($vocabularies) + 1;
-    $vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid);
-    // This should not return an object because no such vocabulary exists.
-    $this->assertTrue(empty($vocabulary), t('No object loaded.'));
-
-    // Create a new vocabulary.
-    $this->createVocabulary();
-    // Load the vocabulary with the same $vid from earlier.
-    // This should return a vocabulary object since it now matches a real vid.
-    $vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid);
-    $this->assertTrue(!empty($vocabulary) && is_object($vocabulary), t('Vocabulary is an object'));
-    $this->assertTrue($vocabulary->vid == $vid, t('Valid vocabulary vid is the same as our previously invalid one.'));
-  }
+   function testTaxonomyVocabularyLoadReturnFalse() {
+     // Load a vocabulary that doesn't exist.
+     $vocabularies = taxonomy_get_vocabularies();
+     $vid = count($vocabularies) + 1;
+     $vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid);
+     // This should not return an object because no such vocabulary exists.
+     $this->assertTrue(empty($vocabulary), t('No object loaded.'));
+ 
+     // Create a new vocabulary.
+     $this->createVocabulary();
+     // Load the vocabulary with the same $vid from earlier.
+     // This should return a vocabulary object since it now matches a real vid.
+     $vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($vid);
+     $this->assertTrue(!empty($vocabulary) && is_object($vocabulary), t('Vocabulary is an object'));
+     $this->assertTrue($vocabulary->vid == $vid, t('Valid vocabulary vid is the same as our previously invalid one.'));
+   }
 
   /**
    * Ensure that the vocabulary static reset works correctly.
    */
-  function testTaxonomyVocabularyLoadStaticReset() {
-    $original_vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($this->vocabulary->vid);
-    $this->assertTrue(is_object($original_vocabulary), t('Vocabulary loaded successfully'));
-    $this->assertEqual($this->vocabulary->name, $original_vocabulary->name, t('Vocabulary loaded successfully'));
-
-    // Change the name and description.
-    $vocabulary = $original_vocabulary;
-    $vocabulary->name = $this->randomName();
-    $vocabulary->description = $this->randomName();
-    taxonomy_vocabulary_save($vocabulary);
-
-    // Load the vocabulary.
-    $new_vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($original_vocabulary->vid);
-    $this->assertEqual($new_vocabulary->name, $vocabulary->name);
-    $this->assertEqual($new_vocabulary->name, $vocabulary->name);
-
-    // Delete the vocabulary.
-    taxonomy_vocabulary_delete($this->vocabulary->vid);
-    $vocabularies = taxonomy_get_vocabularies();
-    $this->assertTrue(!isset($vocabularies[$this->vocabulary->vid]), t('The vocabulary was deleted'));
-  }
+   function testTaxonomyVocabularyLoadStaticReset() {
+     $original_vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($this->vocabulary->vid);
+     $this->assertTrue(is_object($original_vocabulary), t('Vocabulary loaded successfully'));
+     $this->assertEqual($this->vocabulary->name, $original_vocabulary->name, t('Vocabulary loaded successfully'));
+
+     // Change the name and description.
+     $vocabulary = $original_vocabulary;
+     $vocabulary->name = $this->randomName();
+     $vocabulary->description = $this->randomName();
+     taxonomy_vocabulary_save($vocabulary);
+ 
+     // Load the vocabulary.
+     $new_vocabulary = taxonomy_vocabulary_load($original_vocabulary->vid);
+     $this->assertEqual($new_vocabulary->name, $vocabulary->name);
+     $this->assertEqual($new_vocabulary->name, $vocabulary->name);
+
+     // Delete the vocabulary.
+     taxonomy_vocabulary_delete($this->vocabulary->vid);
+     $vocabularies = taxonomy_get_vocabularies();
+     $this->assertTrue(!isset($vocabularies[$this->vocabulary->vid]), t('The vocabulary was deleted'));
+   }
 
   /**
    * Tests for loading multiple vocabularies.
@@ -278,7 +278,7 @@ class TaxonomyVocabularyUnitTest extends TaxonomyWebTestCase {
     $this->assertTrue(current(taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(array($vocabulary1->vid), array('name' => $vocabulary1->name))) == $vocabulary1, t('Vocabulary loaded successfully by name and ID.'));
 
     // Fetch vocabulary 1 with specified node type.
-    drupal_static_reset('taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple');
+    drupal_get_entity_loader('taxonomy_vocabulary')->resetCache();
     $vocabulary_node_type = current(taxonomy_vocabulary_load_multiple(array($vocabulary1->vid), array('type' => 'article')));
     $this->assertEqual($vocabulary_node_type, $vocabulary1, t('Vocabulary with specified node type loaded successfully.'));
   }
diff --git modules/user/user.module modules/user/user.module
index 829a30c..cb2e0e1 100644
--- modules/user/user.module
+++ modules/user/user.module
@@ -86,11 +86,14 @@ function user_theme() {
 /**
  * Implement hook_fieldable_info().
  */
-function user_fieldable_info() {
+function user_entity_info() {
   $return = array(
     'user' => array(
       'name' => t('User'),
+      'loader class' => 'UserLoader',
+      'base table' => 'users',
       'id key' => 'uid',
+      'fieldable' => TRUE,
     ),
   );
   return $return;
@@ -177,68 +180,29 @@ function user_external_login($account, $edit = array()) {
  * @return
  *   An array of user objects, indexed by uid.
  *
+ * @see drupal_load_multiple()
  * @see user_load()
  * @see user_load_by_mail()
  * @see user_load_by_name()
  */
 function user_load_multiple($uids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FALSE) {
-  static $user_cache = array();
-  if ($reset) {
-    $user_cache = array();
-  }
-
-  $users = array();
-
-  // Create a new variable which is either a prepared version of the $uids
-  // array for later comparison with the user cache, or FALSE if no $uids were
-  // passed. The $uids array is reduced as items are loaded from cache, and we
-  // need to know if it's empty for this reason to avoid querying the database
-  // when all requested users are loaded from cache.
-  $passed_uids = !empty($uids) ? array_flip($uids) : FALSE;
-
-  // Load any available users from the internal cache.
-  if ($user_cache) {
-    if ($uids && !$conditions) {
-      $users += array_intersect_key($user_cache, $passed_uids);
-      // If any users were loaded, remove them from the $uids still to load.
-      $uids = array_keys(array_diff_key($passed_uids, $users));
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Load any remaining users from the database, this is necessary if we have
-  // $uids still to load, or if $conditions was passed without $uids.
-  if ($uids || ($conditions && !$passed_uids)) {
-    $query = db_select('users', 'u')->fields('u');
-
-    // If the $uids array is populated, add those to the query.
-    if ($uids) {
-      $query->condition('u.uid', $uids, 'IN');
-    }
-    // If the conditions array is populated, add those to the query.
-    if ($conditions) {
-      // TODO D7: Using LIKE() to get a case insensitive comparison because Crell
-      // and chx promise that dbtng will map it to ILIKE in postgres.
-      if (isset($conditions['name'])) {
-        $query->condition('u.name', $conditions['name'], 'LIKE');
-        unset($conditions['name']);
-      }
-      if (isset($conditions['mail'])) {
-        $query->condition('u.mail', $conditions['mail'], 'LIKE');
-        unset($conditions['mail']);
-      }
-      foreach ($conditions as $field => $value) {
-        $query->condition('u.' . $field, $value);
-      }
-    }
-    $result = $query->execute();
+  return drupal_load_multiple('user', $uids, $conditions, $reset);
+}
 
-    $queried_users = array();
+/**
+ * Loader class for users.
+ *
+ * This extends the DrupalDefaultEntityLoader class, adding required special
+ * handling for user objects.
+ */
+class UserLoader extends DrupalDefaultEntityLoader {
+  function attachLoad(&$queried_users) {
     // Build an array of user picture IDs so that these can be fetched later.
     $picture_fids = array();
-    foreach ($result as $record) {
+    foreach ($queried_users as $key => $record) {
       $picture_fids[] = $record->picture;
-      $queried_users[$record->uid] = drupal_unpack($record);
-      $queried_users[$record->uid]->roles = array();
+      $queried_users[$key] = drupal_unpack($record);
+      $queried_users[$key]->roles = array();
       if ($record->uid) {
         $queried_users[$record->uid]->roles[DRUPAL_AUTHENTICATED_RID] = 'authenticated user';
       }
@@ -247,57 +211,29 @@ function user_load_multiple($uids = array(), $conditions = array(), $reset = FAL
       }
     }
 
-    if (!empty($queried_users)) {
-      // Add any additional roles from the database.
-      $result = db_query('SELECT r.rid, r.name, ur.uid FROM {role} r INNER JOIN {users_roles} ur ON ur.rid = r.rid WHERE ur.uid IN (:uids)', array(':uids' => array_keys($queried_users)));
-      foreach ($result as $record) {
-        $queried_users[$record->uid]->roles[$record->rid] = $record->name;
-      }
+    // Add any additional roles from the database.
+    $result = db_query('SELECT r.rid, r.name, ur.uid FROM {role} r INNER JOIN {users_roles} ur ON ur.rid = r.rid WHERE ur.uid IN (:uids)', array(':uids' => array_keys($queried_users)));
+    foreach ($result as $record) {
+      $queried_users[$record->uid]->roles[$record->rid] = $record->name;
+    }
 
-      // Add the full file objects for user pictures if enabled.
-      if (!empty($picture_fids) && variable_get('user_pictures', 1) == 1) {
-        $pictures = file_load_multiple($picture_fids);
-        foreach ($queried_users as $account) {
-          if (!empty($account->picture) && isset($pictures[$account->picture])) {
-            $account->picture = $pictures[$account->picture];
-          }
-          else {
-            $account->picture = NULL;
-          }
+    // Add the full file objects for user pictures if enabled.
+    if (!empty($picture_fids) && variable_get('user_pictures', 1) == 1) {
+      $pictures = file_load_multiple($picture_fids);
+      foreach ($queried_users as $account) {
+        if (!empty($account->picture) && isset($pictures[$account->picture])) {
+          $account->picture = $pictures[$account->picture];
+        }
+        else {
+          $account->picture = NULL;
         }
       }
-
-      field_attach_load('user', $queried_users);
-
-      // Invoke hook_user_load() on the users loaded from the database
-      // and add them to the static cache.
-      foreach (module_implements('user_load') as $module) {
-        $function = $module . '_user_load';
-        $function($queried_users);
-      }
-
-
-
-      $users = $users + $queried_users;
-      $user_cache = $user_cache + $queried_users;
     }
+    // Call the default attachLoad() method. This will add fields and call hook_user_load().
+    parent::attachLoad($queried_users);
   }
-
-  // Ensure that the returned array is ordered the same as the original $uids
-  // array if this was passed in and remove any invalid uids.
-  if ($passed_uids) {
-    // Remove any invalid uids from the array.
-    $passed_uids = array_intersect_key($passed_uids, $users);
-    foreach ($users as $user) {
-      $passed_uids[$user->uid] = $user;
-    }
-    $users = $passed_uids;
-  }
-
-  return $users;
 }
 
-
 /**
  * Fetch a user object.
  *