heu·ris·tic
hyu̇-ˈri-stik 
: involving or serving as an aid to learning, discovery, or problem-solving by experimental and especially trial-and-error methods
heuristic techniques
a heuristic assumption
also
: of or relating to exploratory problem-solving techniques that utilize self-educating techniques (such as the evaluation of feedback) to improve performance
a heuristic computer program
1
: the study or practice of heuristic (see heuristic entry 1) procedure
2
: heuristic (see heuristic entry 1) argument
3
: a heuristic (see heuristic entry 1) method or procedure
Examples of heuristic in a Sentence
Adjective
If Orbitz prevails, its online reservation process alone may blow away the competition. Unlike mainframe-based systems … , Orbitz uses racks of PCs to search fare data, making it easier to scale up computing power. And its intelligent … algorithms evaluate all the possible fares simultaneously instead of employing heuristic shortcuts designed to use as little computing power as possible.
—
Evan Ratliff, WIRED, September 2000
Because "tradition" has served as a powerful heuristic term, we are always in danger of reifying it …
—Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Reading Black, Reading Feminist, 1990
Its heuristic principle would be St. Augustine's axiom that the Old Testament is revealed in the New and the New concealed in the Old …
—V. B. Leitch, American Literary Criticism from the Thirties to the Eighties, 1988
Noun
"Cult" is best understood not as a descriptor, but as a command, like a law officer's "Halt!" Its purpose is to stop and contain. A more useful heuristic would be to identify precisely the most disturbing practices, beliefs, or incidents in the world of a "cult" …
—Robert A. Orsi, Commonweal, 6 Oct. 2000
Search engines … use heuristics to determine the way in which to order—and thereby prioritize—pages.
—Soumen Chakrabarti et al., Scientific American, June 1999
Evan Ratliff, WIRED, September 2000
Because "tradition" has served as a powerful heuristic term, we are always in danger of reifying it …
—Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Reading Black, Reading Feminist, 1990
Its heuristic principle would be St. Augustine's axiom that the Old Testament is revealed in the New and the New concealed in the Old …
—V. B. Leitch, American Literary Criticism from the Thirties to the Eighties, 1988
Noun
"Cult" is best understood not as a descriptor, but as a command, like a law officer's "Halt!" Its purpose is to stop and contain. A more useful heuristic would be to identify precisely the most disturbing practices, beliefs, or incidents in the world of a "cult" …
—Robert A. Orsi, Commonweal, 6 Oct. 2000
Search engines … use heuristics to determine the way in which to order—and thereby prioritize—pages.
—Soumen Chakrabarti et al., Scientific American, June 1999
Recent Examples on the Web
Brad Templeton, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
The clearest evidence has come with the launch of FSD v12, the first iteration to do away with heuristic commands in C++ programming code entirely in favor of an end-to-end neural network that takes in visual data, processes it in real time though its AI inference chip onboard, and pilots the car.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 4 Oct. 2024
Hans Peter Brondmo, WIRED, 10 Sep. 2024
The Power of Subtle Nudges Most micro-decisions happen automatically, driven by habits, routines, and heuristics—mental shortcuts our brains use to make quick decisions.
—Roger Dooley, Forbes, 4 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for heuristic 
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Adjective
Programmers do not craft internal structure or do smart heuristic optimizations based on their knowledge of the driving task.
—Brad Templeton, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
The clearest evidence has come with the launch of FSD v12, the first iteration to do away with heuristic commands in C++ programming code entirely in favor of an end-to-end neural network that takes in visual data, processes it in real time though its AI inference chip onboard, and pilots the car.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 4 Oct. 2024
Noun
The robot hadn’t been explicitly programmed, using traditional heuristics, to make that move.
—Hans Peter Brondmo, WIRED, 10 Sep. 2024
The Power of Subtle Nudges Most micro-decisions happen automatically, driven by habits, routines, and heuristics—mental shortcuts our brains use to make quick decisions.
—Roger Dooley, Forbes, 4 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for heuristic
Articles Related to heuristic
Dictionary Entries Near heuristic
Cite this Entry
“Heuristic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heuristic. Accessed 18 Nov. 2024.
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