experiment

[ noun ik-sper-uh-muhnt; verb ek-sper-uh-ment ]
See synonyms for: experimentexperimentedexperimentingexperiments on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. a test, trial, or tentative procedure; an act or operation for the purpose of discovering something unknown or of testing a principle, supposition, etc.: a chemical experiment; a teaching experiment; an experiment in living.

  2. the conducting of such operations; experimentation: a product that is the result of long experiment.

  1. Obsolete. experience.

verb (used without object)
  1. to try or test, especially in order to discover or prove something: to experiment with a new procedure.

Origin of experiment

1
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English: “proof,” from Latin experīmentum “test, trial,” from experī(rī) “to test, try” (see experience) + -mentum -ment

synonym study For experiment

1. See trial.

Other words for experiment

Other words from experiment

  • ex·per·i·ment·er, ex·per·i·men·tor, ex·per·i·men·ta·tor, noun
  • pre·ex·per·i·ment, noun
  • pro·ex·per·i·ment, adjective
  • re·ex·per·i·ment, verb (used without object), noun
  • un·ex·per·i·ment·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use experiment in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for experiment

experiment

noun(ɪkˈspɛrɪmənt)
  1. a test or investigation, esp one planned to provide evidence for or against a hypothesis: a scientific experiment

  2. the act of conducting such an investigation or test; experimentation; research

  1. an attempt at something new or different; an effort to be original: a poetic experiment

  2. an obsolete word for experience

verb(ɪkˈspɛrɪˌmɛnt)
  1. (intr) to make an experiment or experiments

Origin of experiment

1
C14: from Latin experīmentum proof, trial, from experīrī to test; see experience

Derived forms of experiment

  • experimenter, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for experiment

experiment

[ ĭk-spĕrə-mənt ]


  1. A test or procedure carried out under controlled conditions to determine the validity of a hypothesis or make a discovery. See Note at hypothesis.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.