empirical

Plural: empiricals

Adjective

• derived from experiment and observation rather than theory
  • "an empirical basis for an ethical theory"
  • "empirical laws"
  • "empirical data"
  • "an empirical treatment of a disease about which little is known"
• relying on medical quackery

Adj

• Pertaining to or based on experience, as opposed to theory.
• Pertaining to, derived from, or testable by observations made using the physical senses or using instruments which extend the senses.
• Verifiable by means of scientific experimentation.

Noun

• A measurement or result achieved by empirical means.

Examples

• demonstrable with empirical evidence
• For some presumptive diagnoses, empirical antibiotic therapy begins immediately, whereas specific antibiotic therapy must await the results of the culture and sensitivity test.
• The lengths were calculated according to the empirical rules of the trade.

Synonyms

empiric

Antonyms

theoretical, anecdotal, nonempirical

Related Words

anecdotal evidence, empirical evidence, empiricism, empiricist, empyrical, trial and error

Anagrams of empirical