empirical

adjective

em·​pir·​i·​cal im-ˈpir-i-kəl 

em-

variants or less commonly empiric

im-ˈpir-ik 

1

: originating in or based on observation or experience

empirical data

2

: relying on experience or observation alone often without due regard for system and theory

an empirical basis for the theory

3

: capable of being verified or disproved by observation or experiment

empirical laws

4

: of or relating to empiricism

Did you know?

Empirical Has Roots in Latin and Greek

When empirical first appeared as an adjective in English, it meant simply “in the manner of an empiric.” In the ancient world, empirics were members of a sect of doctors who practiced medicine using treatments observed to be clinically effective, rather than treatments based on theoretical principles. This sounds all fine and good to a modern reader, but empirics were in direct opposition to Galen, the 2nd century Greek physician whose theories and practices (including the theory of bodily humors) dominated medicine in Europe from the Middle Ages until the mid-17th century. As the underdogs in this rivalry, empirics took some reputational hits, evidenced by the use of empiric to refer to someone who disregards or deviates from the rules of science or accepted practice; to be called an empiric was sometimes like being called a quack or charlatan. Empirical can still be used critically to describe ideas and practices that rely on experience or observation alone and without due regard for system or theory. But, perhaps in a bit of a case of “the Empirics strike back,” empirical more often keeps its narrower sense, and is used positively to describe evidence and information grounded in observation and experience, or capable of being verified or disproved by observation or experiment.

Synonyms

• existential
• experiential
• experimental
• objective
• observational

Examples of empirical in a Sentence

Eventually, access to electron microscopes and X-ray diffraction technology provided the necessary empirical evidence to test the hypotheses, and the jigsaw pieces began to fall into place. —Gail Nichols, Ceramics Monthly, February 2002

No religion, new or old, is subject to empirical proof, so what we have is a contest between faiths. —Harvey Cox, Atlantic, March 1999

They collected plenty of empirical data from their experiments.

guidelines for raising children that are based on empirical evidence

Recent Examples on the Web

The trio all hired the best-in-class consultants and advisers to handle the practical day-to-day grind, and usually persuaded the bosses that the empirical evidence offered a rational prescription. —Philip Elliott, TIME, 11 Dec. 2024

Although the nation’s intelligence agencies have been divided over COVID’s origins, no empirical evidence has ever been published to support the lab-leak theory. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 10 Dec. 2024

The positive relationship between economic freedom and economic growth is one of the most robust empirical relationships in economics. —Adam A. Millsap, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024

There’s no empirical evidence to support the lab story. —Lisa Chase, Outside Online, 29 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

empiric "of physicians in ancient Greece and Rome holding that treatment should be based on observation rather than theory" (going back to Middle English emperic, borrowed from early Medieval Latin empīricus, borrowed from Greek empeirikós, "based on observation (of medical treatment), experienced") + -al entry 1 — more at empiric

First Known Use

1576, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing empirical

• empirical formula

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Kids Definition

empirical

adjective

em·​pir·​i·​cal im-ˈpir-i-kəl 

em-

variants also empiric

-ˈpir-ik 

1

: relying on experience or observation usually without regard for a system and theory

empirical medicine

2

: based on observation or experience

empirical data

3

: capable of being proved or disproved by observation or experiment

empirical laws

empirically

-ˈpir-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Medical Definition

empirical

adjective

em·​pir·​i·​cal -i-kəl 

variants also empiric

-ik 

1

archaic

a

: following or used in the practice of the empirics compare rational sense 2

b

: being or befitting a quack or charlatan

2

: originating in or based on observation or experiment

much medical lore had had an empirical origin … centuries of trial-and-error gropings after remedies

—R. H. Shryock

3

: capable of being confirmed, verified, or disproved by observation or experiment

empirical statements or laws

empirically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb