Occam's razor

noun

1. the maxim that assumptions introduced to explain a thing must not be multiplied beyond necessity.

Occam's razor

noun

1. a variant spelling of Ockham's razor

Occam's razor

1. A rule in science and philosophy stating that entities should not be multiplied needlessly. This rule is interpreted to mean that the simplest of two or more competing theories is preferable and that an explanation for unknown phenomena should first be attempted in terms of what is already known. Occam's razor is named after the deviser of the rule, English philosopher and theologian William of Ockham (1285?–1349?).

Word History and Origins

Origin of Occam's razor¹

First recorded in 1900–05; after William of Occam

Example Sentences

While Endres acknowledges the idea as logically possible, he notes that it runs counter to Occam's razor, the principle that favors simpler explanations.

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Asked what he would have done different four years ago, Baffert offered an Occam’s razor kind of answer.

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“To carve away the rotten bits of my festering mind with Occam’s razor of the better angels of my greater nature. And while I am 100 percent positive that last thought did not make any f------ sense, it certainly felt true when I thought it, and that matters.”

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It’s possible he's a true believer in this nonsense, but Occam's razor suggests that when politicians tell lies they do so for their own benefit.

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The pat dismissal of what appears to be obvious is suspicious in itself, and part of the reason that millions of boys are internalizing the Occam’s razor solution: They’re simply inferior.

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