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experimentalism

American  
[ik-sper-uh-men-tl-iz-uhm] / ɪkˌspɛr əˈmɛn tlˌɪz əm /

noun

  1. doctrine or practice of relying on experimentation; empiricism.

  2. fondness for experimenting or innovating.

    The psychologists' children were raised in an atmosphere of vigorous experimentalism.


experimentalism British  
/ ɪkˌspɛrɪˈmɛntəˌlɪzəm /

noun

  1. employment of or reliance upon experiments; empiricism

"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

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of experimentalism

First recorded in 1825–35; experimental + -ism

Vocabulary lists containing experimentalism

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:

Ulysses Jenkins, the pioneering Los Angeles-born video artist whose avant-garde compositions embodied Black experimentalism, has died.

From Los Angeles Times Mar. 2, 2026

Everything from Mexican pop to European experimentalism was strained, boiled, compressed and stretched into addictive instrumental taffy.

From Los Angeles Times May 8, 2024

“Do It Again” recalls the energetic, eclectic pop of both performers — like a marriage between BENEE’s 2020 viral hit, “Supalonely,” and Mallrat’s accessible experimentalism, found in the song “Groceries.”

From Seattle Times Jun. 28, 2023

In the 1960s and ’70s, Crumb was an oft-discussed figure, his compositions in the forefront of musical experimentalism for his explorations in unorthodox ways of drawing sounds from traditional instruments.

From Seattle Times Mar. 23, 2022

Dogmatic experimentalism and dogmatic idealism signify more or less consistently the abstract isolation of the scientific and philosophical motives.

From The Approach to Philosophy by Perry, Ralph Barton

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