experiment
Americannoun
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experiments
plural
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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.
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the conducting of such operations; experimentation.
a product that is the result of long experiment.
- Synonyms:
- investigation, research
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Obsolete. experience.
verb (used without object)
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experiments,
present (3rd person singular)
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experimented,
past participle, past
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experimenting
present participle
noun
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a test or investigation, esp one planned to provide evidence for or against a hypothesis: a scientific experiment
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the act of conducting such an investigation or test; experimentation; research
-
an attempt at something new or different; an effort to be original
a poetic experiment
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an obsolete word for experience
verb
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A test or procedure carried out under controlled conditions to determine the validity of a hypothesis or make a discovery.
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See Note at hypothesis
Synonym Usage
See trial.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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experimentatornoun
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experimenternoun
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experimentornoun
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preexperimentnoun
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reexperimentverb (used without object)
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proexperimentadjective
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unexperimentedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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experimentsimple
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experimentssimple
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have experimentedperfect
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has experimentedperfect
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am experimentingprogressive
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are experimentingprogressive
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is experimentingprogressive
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have been experimentingperfect progressive
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has been experimentingperfect progressive
Past
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experimentedsimple
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had experimentedperfect
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was experimentingprogressive
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were experimentingprogressive
-
had been experimentingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of experiment
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English: “proof,” from Latin experīmentum “test, trial,” from experī(rī) “to test, try” ( see experience) + -mentum -ment
Explanation
If you see your science-loving neighbor headed home with a power cord, a handful of test tubes, a stopwatch, and a bag of potatoes, there’s probably no need to be alarmed. There’s a good chance he’s only conducting an experiment, a scientific test conducted under controlled conditions. To refer to a scientific test, use the noun experiment. If you want to describe the work done in conducting such a test, experiment will do the trick as well, since it can also act as a verb, as in "scientists experiment with helium." You can also use it more generally to describe trying a new method or idea. For example, you could experiment with a new hairstyle or different routes to get to school or work.
Vocabulary lists containing experiment
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 4
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The Scientific Method
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The New SAT: The Language of the Test
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It is yet another reason he gives for why this project, which started as a simple "design experiment", has taken ten years to finish.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
In one experiment, the drug was injected into the abdomen so it could have effects throughout the body.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
The experiment failed — none of the quartet advanced beyond Class-A — yet Fontaine maintained the sunny outlook he inherited from his father.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026
Congress reversed course before the experiment was scheduled to end.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026
It is true that after saying no to every other flavor I invented, Dad whipped up an experiment batch of Cheddar-Bunny crunch earlier this summer.
From "Invisible Inkling" by Emily Jenkins
Freeman, the Alaska director of the Center for Biological Diversity, isn't just concerned Homer residents weren't widely alerted to these experiments.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
The mouse results and experiments on human tissue represent important early evidence, but clinical trials specifically testing cartilage regeneration will be needed to determine whether the approach is safe and effective for patients.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
The idea first emerged from experiments in Yong's laboratory using mice.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 4, 2026
And look — the Murray experiments make for good cinema.
From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026
It was a curious phenomenon, and Galileo passed the problem on to his assistant, Torricelli, who started doing experiments, trying to figure out the reason for the pumps’ curious limitation.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
Since the start of the 20th century, when the British Royal Navy experimented with radio jamming and intercepting enemy communications, the vulnerability of radio signals has been exploited in combat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
This focused exhibition brings together a selection of Jack Whitten’s work from the 1980s, a particularly energized period in his 60-year career when he experimented with form, material and meaning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
The group filled arenas across the West, collaborated with major American artists, experimented with hip-hop and electronic music, and turned their own fashion and creative identities into part of their appeal.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
The gathering is the first Republican national convention held specifically for a midterm election, although Democrats experimented with similar meetings in the 1970s and 1980s.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
In one of the books Patrice gave me, I’d read about an American scientist who’d experimented with monkeys in the 1950s.
From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer
I went into the recipe expecting exactly that, was delighted to find it delivered and started experimenting with the same trick in soups of my own.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
As early as the 19th century, vintners began experimenting with dealcoholized wine using a process known as vacuum distillation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
Researchers can refine scanning methods and computer algorithms on expendable models rather than experimenting directly on irreplaceable ancient artifacts.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
Watch the video above to understand how the industry is experimenting with technology that could change how music is made, performed and experienced.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
In this account of the creation the gods seemed bent on experimenting with the various metals, and, oddly enough, proceeding downward from the excellent to the good to the worse and so on.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
