HYPOTHESIS

Hypothesis

A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it. Scientists generally base scientific hypotheses on previous observations that cannot satisfactorily be explained with the available scientific theories. Even though the words "hypothesis" and "theory" are often used synonymously, a scientific hypothesis is not the same as a scientific theory. A scientific hypothesis is a proposed explanation of a phenomenon which still has to be rigorously tested. In contrast, a scientific theory has ...

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hypothesis

Noun

  1. Used loosely, a tentative conjecture explaining an observation, phenomenon or scientific problem that can be tested by further observation, investigation and/or experimentation. As a scientific term of art, see the attached quotation. Compare to theory, and quotation given there.
  2. An assumption taken to be true for the purpose of argument or investigation.
  3. The antecedent of a conditional statement.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: hypothesis
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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